Fire and Gold
by SereneCalamity
Summary: They weren't looking for any further entanglements. But they just kept on bumping into each other. Clace.
1. Chapter 1

_New story! I was at a loss for a title, but then I was listening to Bea Miller's song, and this title just seemed to fit!_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the characters._

Clarissa Fairchild-Morgenstern took in a deep breath, rubbing her hand over her face. She was pretty certain, that the next arrogant prick who thought he could 'innocently' brush his hand over her ass was going to get a slap to the face. Or a broken nose. It really depended on whether or not she was holding anything. If she was cleaning utensils, she might even stab one of them in their grabby hands with a fork—once again, it all depended. She walked back behind the counter, picking up the rag she had been wiping down the bench with and rinsing it out under the tap in the front sink.

"Order up," came a call from the cook, and she looked between over the counter that separated the kitchen from the front of house serving area. Simon Lewis gave her a half smile as he jerked his head over to the latest round of men that she had taken lunch orders from. "Just ignore them," he told her.

"Yeah, easy for you to say," Clary muttered with a roll of her eyes. "Back there with only grease and cheeseburgers to harass you." She couldn't help it though, she liked the kid. He was the only one that made this place bearable.

"Don't you mock me, Clary," Simon pointed his spatula at her with a grin. "Go and serve your customers."

"Oh, is that what they are?" Clary grumbled under her breath as she picked up the two plates, which were piled high with food that looked as though it had all just been thrown into a blender and then deep fried, and walked it out to the table with two leering men. When she came back, there was a couple waiting in front of her till. She forced a smile as she reached them. "Hi there, welcome to _Taki's Diner_. What can I get you today?"

"Can I just have a cheeseburger with a chocolate milkshake?" The man asked with a friendly smile. Clary punched in his order and then looked over at his partner.

"I'll have a soy latte," The girl asked, her little button nose scrunched up as she studied the menu. "And do you have any bran muffins?" Clary stared at her for a second, as though trying to gauge whether or not she was serious before blinking, forcing herself to keep her facial expression blank.

"No, sorry," she replied. "If you're looking for _Starbucks_ I'm pretty sure you're in the wrong town."

"Do you even _do_ soy latte's?" The girl asked snootily.

"Nope," Clary shook her head.

"Any kind of lattes?"

"The only sort of coffee we serve here comes from that instant coffee maker over there," Clary wiggled her finger over at the sad looking coffee machine in the corner of the room. The look of disgust on the girls face was almost priceless before she finally muttered,

"I'll just get a bottle of water."

"That'll be twelve dollars all up," Clary turned her gaze back to the man, who willingly pushed some notes over the counter and then grabbed his girlfriend, leading her away. Clary's called out that they needed a cheeseburger over her shoulder to Simon and then glared after the couple. There was nothing wrong with the man, but she couldn't stand girls like that. Maybe it had something to do with her stubborn, no-nonsense nature, or maybe it had something to do with her upbringing, and the fact that no one would ever dare show her that kind of disrespect if they actually knew who she was.

"Uh, Clary?" Simon had been trying to get her attention for the past few seconds, saying her name, and she shook her head, looking over to him. He was frowning, and she tilted her head to the side, and he nodded his head down at her. She was folding the pen in her hand so hard that it had actually snapped and the ink was leaking onto her palm. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Clary forced a smile, something that she was getting very good at these days. "Just peachy."

"If you're sure," he arched an eyebrow uncertainly but she just kept the plastic smile on her face. He was about to back away from the counter when there was a shout from one of the assholes that had made a pass at Clary when she had leaned over to wipe down their table.

"Hey, Simon! How's that pretty girlfriend of yours?!" Clary's eyes narrowed as she looked between the man and then back to Simon, who just shrugged good-naturedly.

"She's good, thanks," he replied with an easy smile. Part of Clary envied how oblivious Simon seemed to be, but the other part of her wanted to jab him in the ribs and force him to fight back. Preferably with his fists. Possibly with the potato peeler he was holding in his hand at the moment.

She really needed to shake these feelings.

She didn't live like that anymore.

Fuck.

She needed a drink.

* * *

It was just after three and Clary was already onto her second bourbon and cola. This back country town was not the sort of place she had imagined spending her early twenties. She loved New York. She loved the fact that it didn't matter if it was two in the afternoon or two in the morning, she was always going to surrounding by a buzz. She loved the atmosphere, and the noise, and the fact that she could loose herself just by turning the corner.

Not like here.

Although, the boy who was bent over the pool table in the corner of the bar could possibly provide a distraction.

She had been watching him for the past twenty minutes or so. He had black hair, which was weird, because he had fair eyelashes and eyebrows like someone who was blonde, but somehow, the look worked on him. He was wearing a light blue tee-shirt that clung to his well formed torso and his biceps, and there was a tattoo curling down one arm. He was clearly the 'man in charge' with the four or five boys he was with, given whenever he spoke, they all paid attention, and there was an air of respect that followed him as he walked.

He looked like kind of a bad boy, a bit of a heart breaker, which Clary liked. She had that in common with her mum, although that wasn't necessarily a good thing, given that's what had ended the two of them in this town to begin with.

"Hey, love," the girl behind the counter smiled over at Clary, and she looked back at her with a raised eyebrow. "You want a refill, or are you good?" Clary looked down at the tumbler in her hand and blinked when she realized that she had indeed finished her second drink. She pursed her lips and then shrugged and nodded. The girl refilled her glass and Clary handed over her Eftpos card for a third time, entering her pin and then putting her card back in her wallet.

She should probably head home after this.

Her mother definitely wouldn't be happy if she was late for dinner _and_ drunk. One she could get away with. Both, she would be risking a dressing down, even though she was a twenty-two year old adult.

Clary felt a spell of heat in her stomach as the dark haired man leaned over the pool table to take a shot. He pulled the pool cue back and lined up his shot, wiggling his ass just a little bit and her tongue ran along her lower lip in approval. There were two other girls who were standing close to the pool table, near the rest of his friends, and when hit his mark, they cheered and jumped up and down like he had just won some world cup final. They went over to him, kissing him on cheeks and cooing out the name 'Seb'. She rolled her eyes in disgust as she looked the two girls up and down.

At least one thing remained the same.

The sluts were the same here as they were in New York.

She sighed and threw back the rest of her drink, pushing the glass back over the counter and getting up from her seat. The bar was a grimy looking hole in the wall, and she ducked around a couple of slime balls who let their gazes drag over her body was she walked past. Her legs felt a little heavy, but she liked that. She was used to that. There was a slight tingle in her fingers as she pushed open the door and walked outside. It was already getting dark, even though it was just before four now, and it was starting to spit. She was still wearing the high waisted black skirt and red top from work, so she wasn't feeling particularly warm, and she reached up to pull her hair from it's ponytail, fluffing it around her face and neck to help.

"Shit," Clary muttered under her breath as she fumbled around in her bag for her keys. She clumsily found them and pulled them out, walking over to her car. Her lips twisted in annoyance as she looked at the black Mazda she was now forced to drive, and her mind flitted back to the 1970 Dodge Challenger that she had been given by her father on her sixteenth birthday. She had loved that car ever since the day she had gotten behind the wheel and felt the power of the eight engines under her fingertips. Jonathon Fairchild-Morgenstern had always been jealous of the car, which had made her love it even more. Her thoughts shifted to her brother as she shoved the key into the lock and turned it over, dropping them on the ground in her partially drunken state.

Jon had always said that she drove better drunk, anyway.

"You're fucking kidding, right?" Came a growl from behind her, and she spun around and saw one hell of a gorgeous man standing there. He was all molten gold—wavy, golden hair that looked slightly damp, skin that was glowing gold from a surprising tan despite the constant, bad weather in this town, and furious golden eyes that were trained directly on her.

"I'm sorry," there was definite sass in her tone, something that she couldn't really help. "Are you talking to me?"

"You're going to drive drunk?" He snapped, and looked down at the keys in her hand and then back up to her face. His voice was grating her the wrong way, and all of sudden, his good looks weren't making him look like an Adonis. It was making him look like a dumb, football jock who was only attractive when their mouth as shut.

"I've had three drinks," she said in her defence.

"As in three beers drinks? Or as in, three hard liquor drinks?" He shot at her.

"As in, _none of your fucking business_ ," Clary spat at him, turning back around to look at her car. She pulled her door open and was about to slide inside when she was suddenly being pulled away. Her reflexes kicked in immediately, her elbow snapping backwards and ramming itself into the hard planes of the strangers stomach. He let out a grunt, but he didn't let her go, successfully moving her away from the car and snatching the keys from her hand.

"I'll drive you home," he snapped. Clary looked as though she was going to argue, but then she just sighed and nodded. She walked around to the other side of the car and got inside, staring ahead stonily as he started the engine and reversed out of her park.

 _So? What do you guys think? I haven't figured out a posting schedule yet, but once I do, I'll let you all know. A lot of it depends of your feedback, so be nice and leave a few words ;)_

 _As long as you're logged in, I'll also send out a preview, if you want x_


	2. Chapter 2

_Hi, guys! Thank you guys so much for the interest! I'm glad it's something you guys want to see more of! Any mistakes are my own, and I'm sorry._

The ride home was awkwardly quiet. Clary clenched her knees together and her arms folded over her chest. The golden haired man was glaring at the windscreen, his knuckles bloodless around the steering wheel and his pink lips twisted in a scowl. She usually liked it when a man took control, but she really wasn't in the mood for some guy who treated her like she was a fifteen year old after their first wine cooler.

"You make a habit of this?" She asked him, trying to figure out exactly what was going on here. She was also feeling a little vulnerable, being a little tipsy and having no idea who she in a car with. They were in town, and pretty near her place. She figured if he started getting weird, she could always just open her door and roll out.

"Spending my nights with stupid girls who think it's 'cool' to get drunk in the middle of the afternoon?" he snapped at her, clearly not in the mood to talk. "No, thank God."

"I'd like to repeat," she snipped at him. "That I'm _not_ drunk."

"Yeah," he snorted, glancing over at her in a derogatory way that she didn't like. "Right." She narrowed her eyes and turned her gaze back to the windscreen.

"Right here," she grunted as they approached her street. The man indicated and pulled down the street, and then pulled into a drive when she pointed at it. He turned the car off and tossed the keys at her, getting out without a word and walking away. Clary frowned and scrambled to get out of her car, her keys in one hand and her bag in the other. "Hey!" She shouted after him, looking to where he was already at the end of the driveway. "Don't you need a ride home?!"

"I'll get someone to pick me up," he said back, looking over his shoulder just long to reply before turning the corner and walking down the street. Clary stared after him, before the drizzle increased to a heavier pace and she locked her doors and ran inside. She turned her nose up in disgust at the grey afternoon outside. They had only moved into the house a month or so ago, and neither her or her mother had ever really lived in a place with a garden that they needed to tend to, so it was overgrown and the grass was growing a little higher than it should have. It looked even more dismal with the rain.

In New York, even when it rained, there was still always colour and bustle.

Here, it just looked depressing, and made her want to watch soppy movies and eat ice cream.

"That you, baby?" Jocelyn Fairchild called from the kitchen, and Clary rolled her eyes as she dropped her bag on the ground.

"No," she replied sassily. "It's the male stripper I ordered to come over and keep us company. He's got some two for one deal when it comes to red heads."

"Don't tempt me," Jocelyn smirked as Clary walked into the room where she was cooking. "It's been a while since I had a good workout." Clary scrunched up her nose and made a choking noise at the back of her throat. Jocelyn laughed and turned back to the frying pan, picking up the wine glass that was next to the stove and taking a sip. "You had a good day at work, baby?"

"Eh," Clary shrugged, her lips in a pursed line. "As much as you'd expect from a place like this."

"I know it's not what you're use to," Jocelyn murmured. "But it's as good as we got right now, okay?"

"I know, mum," Clary told her, trying to keep her expression light. "I'm just going to have a shower, okay?" She reached over to kiss Jocelyn on the cheek. She was about to pull away when Jocelyn caught her chin and looked at her critically.

"How much you had to drink, girl?" Her mother asked.

"Just a few," Clary jerked her chin away. "I'm fine."

"Yeah, yeah," Jocelyn rolled her eyes. "Just keep your head down. We're meant to be avoiding all kinds of trouble. A DUI _is_ trouble."

"I'm fine," Clary repeated before walking down the hallway toward her room. She looked at her reflection in the floor length mirror beside her door and sighed. Her makeup was a little smudged around the corners of her eyes and her lip stick had faded off after the drinks she had had through the day. The uniform for work was either a pair of black pants or a black skirt and a red shirt with the logo, Taki's, across the back. She styled it up a little bit, wearing a high waisted skirt so that her curvy hips and petite waist were emphasized, had a couple of buttons undone so that she showed a hint of cleavage, and wore heels. It was the small things, but it made her feel at least a little bit more like herself.

She stripped out of her clothes, making a face in the mirror as she kicked them into the corner of the room. Even her lingerie was starting to look as boring as this town she was forced to live in now; she had gone with pale blue bra and panties this morning. She never wore underwear that boring. At least a pale blue bra with some cute, patterned underwear, or plain panties with a lacy, push up bra. She growled under her breath and spun on her heel, heading toward the shower.

* * *

"Hey, girl," Aline Penhallow called as Clary walked into work the next day. Her head was throbbing a little, and she was wearing a pair of sunglasses that covered half of her face, but the smell of greasy food, as usual, actually made her feel better. Aline laughed as Clary walked directly past her and into the kitchen area.

"Are you hungover?" Simon asked as he emptied a plate of deep fried chips onto a plate and quickly got to making the burger.

"Only a little," Clary made a face at him and reached out to snag a couple of the chips off the plate. She let out an almost lewd sounding moan as she chewed on the crispy potato and Simon laughed. "Oh God," she muttered. "These are good." She tried to grab two more, but Simon slapped her away.

"I'll cook you up some of your own," he told her. "When do you start?" Clary rolled her eyes up to the clock on the wall.

"In about...Two minutes," she said, pouting over at Simon and trying to wind her arm around his and reach the chips.

"Fine," he rolled his eyes. "You have those, and I'll cook more."

"You're a babe," she grinned at him as she picked up the plate. She cleaned the plate up in under a minute, her lips greasy, and she sucked the salt off her fingers. She sighed as she looked up at the clock and saw the big hand ticking closer to her start time. "I should probably start work," she sighed, pulling off her sunglasses and blinking a couple of times as the hard, fluorescent lights hit her eyes.

"Hurry up," Aline called from the front. "I want to go on my break."

"Yeah, yeah," Clary muttered. The staff room was a tiny room attached to the back of the kitchen, and she dumped her hand bag in there before walking back out the front. "Off you go, then," she said as she took her position in front of the register. Aline grinned, and skipped off outside, to have a cigarette.

And so the day began.

The job wasn't _horrible_ , but it definitely wasn't something Clary would choose, if she had a choice. She needed to have a job, to 'fit in' apparently, and this was a normal job in a dead end town. At a diner. Aline's parents ran the place, and they'd been looking for someone to come on as another waitress. They had given her a trial for a week and then been happy to take her on. She had never really had a job, in the legal way, back in town New York, but she knew all about a hard days work, and this was peanuts compared to it.

Plus, she got free food.

"Hi there," Clary greeted the next customer, a pretty, dark haired girl who actually looked like she had a sense of style, unlike most people in this backward town.

"Hey, doll," the girl replied with a half smile. "Is Simon back there?"

"Uh," Clary tilted her head to the side as she looked at the girl with a critical eye. "Yeah," she replied. She turned around and called over her shoulder. "Simon! Someone here for you!" There was a crash and a bang, and then Simon appeared in the doorway, looking dorky in his apron and steamed up glasses, and a wide smile on his face.

"Hey, baby," the girl smiled and walked behind the counter, bypassing Clary and wrapping her arms around Simon's neck. She pushed her lips to his mouth, and despite the pink tinge in Simon's cheeks, he kissed her back, his hands settling on her hips. Clary watched them in blatant surprise, and when they pulled apart, she shot Simon a grin.

"You were right," she stated. "She _is_ pretty far out of your league." Simon laughed and shrugged.

"She's got good taste," he said confidently, and both girls laughed with him.

"Izzy," Isabelle Lightwood said, holding out her hand to Clary.

"Clary," she replied, reaching out to shake her hand firmly.

"You're new to town, right?" Isabelle tilted her head to the side as she looked Clary up and down. The red head didn't mind the way Isabelle was looking at her though, she wasn't looking snarky about it, it was just a general size up, which Clary respected. She was doing the exact same thing back to the other girl.

"Yeah, just the past few weeks," Clary replied.

"Well, there's a party this weekend," Isabelle said. "You should come."

"A party?" Clary pursed her lips and then let out a laugh, clenching her teeth together. "Something tells me that a party in a place like this might not be the kind of party that I'm used to." Isabelle laughed and ran her hand through her hair.

"Yeah, yeah," Isabelle grinned. "We might be a small town, but we border on a couple of bigger towns, and we all party together. There's a pool. It'll be fun." Clary looked at for a few seconds before longer.

"Okay, sounds like a plan."

 _So this is my last update for the year. I'm taking some time from now until after New Years because I've got five weeks of training at work, plus two 21st's, plus a concert, plus Christmas and New Years_ — _just insanely busy in general! But I love you all so much, and pretty please leave a review, as an early Christmas present to me, and I'll send you a preview, along with lots of my love._

 _I just wanted to say a huge thank you to you guys for making my year great, and I hope that my stories have helped you all to escape reality for just a few minutes xxxx_


	3. Chapter 3

_Okay! So the original plan was to not update until next year. But the thing is;_ of course _I kept on writing, but I was just focussing on a bunch of prompts and ideas that I've had written down for quite some time. And now I've ended up with an overloaded documents folder and also a bunch of personal messages and reviews asking for a speedy update, so here we go! I'm updating now, and will resume normal updating from the 01/02/2016. I hope you guys had an amazing Christmas, and have an incredible New Year! On with the story, and I apologize for any mistakes made;_

 _Oh yes, and the song that she's singing in this one is_ Mad Hatter _by Melanie Martinez. Which is amazing._

Clary was pretty sure she could count on one hand the amount of times that she had done the grocery shopping. She wasn't an idiot, she knew that food _came_ from the grocery store, but back at home it was always done by other people. Usually her mum would go out, or the boys would bring food in. There were family barbecues almost every second day, and that was her dinner, and then she would grab a muffin and coffee at her favourite café during the days that she went into the city—which was pretty much everyday. She would go to University and paint, or she would just get lost in the city that she loved so much.

And now here she was.

In this town where she could get from one end of the main street to the other by walking in a straight line for fifteen minutes.

She had her doubts about this party that Isabelle had invited her too.

The parties that she went to back home differed, whether they were ones being put on by her Uni friends, or ones that she went to at clubs, and even the one family put on. But all of them were big, and loud, and sometimes got a little out of hand.

She kind of doubted that anything in this town could get out of hand—it was too small and quiet.

"... _I'm nuts, baby, I'm mad. Craziest friend that you've ever had_ ," Clary bobbed her head into time to Melanie Martinez's voice in her ears. She swung her hips slightly from side to side, tapping her finger along the shelf as she considered what pasta sauce to toss into her trolley. " _...I'm peeling the skin off my face. Cause I really hate being safe_." She chose one and put it in the trolley next to the bottle of milk. Her phone started vibrating in her pocket and she pulled it out, putting it to her ear. "Hey, mum."

"Hey, baby," Jocelyn sung out. "Can you make sure you get fresh veges?" Clary looked into the trolley.

"I did," she replied.

" _Not_ the ones that say fresh on the packet," Jocelyn scolded lightly, knowing exactly how her daughter thought. "Actual fresh veges." Clary huffed under her breath and Jocelyn grinned on the other end of the phone.

"Fine," she muttered. "Shouldn't be too long."

"Okay, babes," Jocelyn ended the call and Clary tucked it back into her pocket, _Mad Hatter_ resuming in her ears. Clary finished off the shopping, throwing back the snap frozen vegetables and picking out a couple of actual veges, and then heading toward the front of the store to join the lines at the check out. Ten minutes in the line and she was almost stamping her feet in frustration.

 _This_ was probably why she had never gone grocery shopping.

The impatience she had inherited from her mother and the quick to anger she had inherited from her dad made her almost like a hand grenade in the cramped store, with the grumpy checkout ladies and the irritable children who were grizzling all around her.

"Hi there," the woman behind the counter grunted as Clary finally got to the front of the queue. Clary gave her a tight smile and fought not to tap her foot impatiently as she waited for her groceries to be swiped and scanned, and then she passed over her credit card to cover the cost. As she was leaving, there was a squeal of tyres, and she looked outside to see the guy from the bar, 'Seb', pulling in at the curb with a grin on his face. He caught her looking at for a second, she thought that he was going to come over and talk to her, but then a flouncy girl came over to him, squealing out his name, and his attention was taken.

Clary turned her music up louder, pushing the trolley toward her car. She popped open the boot, and transferred the plastic bags into the car, and then spun her trolley around to push it back toward the store. The music was pounding in her ears, _Carousel_ transporting her away from this dreary town, when there was suddenly an indignant shout and her path was cut off.

The Golden Boy.

"Oh shit," Clary pulled her earbuds out of her ear and winced. "Sorry." Then she was kicking herself for being apologetic. That wasn't really like her, especially when it was someone who was glaring at her like she had been placed _specifically_ on this planet to piss him off.

"Watch where you're going," he muttered. Another twinge of annoyance ran through her and she stepped to the side of her trolley so that she was a foot closer to her.

"Okay, man, I said I'm sorry. I also said thank you for giving me a ride home. So why don't we—"

"Actually you didn't," he interrupted. Clary blinked at him.

"What?" She asked.

"You didn't say thank you for giving you a ride home the other day," he contradicted her. Clary thought for a second, honestly thinking that she had, but then shrugging. She'd had a few drinks and he had fucked her off, so it kind of made sense that she hadn't thanked him. She looked over his shoulder, back to the supermarket, and noted that there was a small coffee shop right next door.

"Okay, well, let me thank you now," she attempted to inject a soothing tone into her voice. "Let me buy you a coffee." He stared at her for a few seconds, looking surprised at her offer, but then shook his head.

"I don't think so," he replied. "I've got enough on my plate. I don't need to add a drunk to my list of responsibilities." Clary's eyes narrowed instantly.

"First of all, it was an offer of coffee. I may not have this small town life completely figured out yet, but I'm pretty sure that even in this hick town, a _coffee_ doesn't make you my babysitter or your responsibility," she was almost spitting. She was furious. She had no idea what this guys problem was. "And second of all, you need to find a girlfriend, or a boyfriend, or whatever the fuck you're into. You just need to have someone riding your cock. Because you walk around with this look on your face like you haven't been satisfied in decades." She jerked around, forgetting her trolley and stalking back to her car. She got in and was out of the car park in seconds, too angry to look back over her shoulder to where he was watching her leave, a stoic expression on his face.

* * *

Jocelyn looked up from where she was sitting on the couch in surprise when she heard the door slam shut. A moment later, Clary appeared in the doorway, a furious expression on her face as she dropped the bags down on the ground. Jocelyn ran her fingers through her tangled red hair and leaned back into the couch.

"Well," she stated. "You look fucked off."

"I need to kick someone," Clary growled. "Or shoot something."

"At least it wasn't shoot some _one_ ," Jocelyn pointed.

"Oh, I want to do so much worse that shoot him," Clary spat. "I would kill him slowly. I would hang him by his toenails and then slowly pull out his teeth and—"

"Okay!" Jocelyn let out a laugh as she got up, coming over to her daughter and putting her hands down on Clary's shoulders and took in a deep breath, miming that the younger girl do the same. Clary glared at her for a moment before doing it, taking a deep breath in and then exhaling heavily through her nose. "Now, I think that you need to join the gym down the road."

"Wow, thanks, mum," Clary sneered sarcastically. "I didn't think I was looking too bad." Jocelyn ignored the tone and purposefully put on a slightly babying tone as she pinched Clary's cheek.

"You know I think you're the most beautiful girl in the world," she hummed out to her. "But you need to find a more constructive—and less violent way—to let out your anger." She picked up the grocery bags from the floor and then walked toward the kitchen.

"I think that society would thank me for this!" Clary shouted through the walls.

"I don't think our Suits would be too happy about it, though!" Jocelyn shouted back. Clary sighed and grumbled under her breath as she kicked off her shoes, sending them sprawling across the wooden floors toward the neatly lined shoes her mother was practically OCD about. Clary took her time coming into the kitchen, so by the time she did, Jocelyn had almost finished putting away all the groceries. "They're coming over next week. Is there anything you want them to bring?"

"Pizza!" Clary gasped out, putting her hands to her cheeks. "So much New York pizza!" There were some high pitched meows and then two balls of fur came skidding into the kitchen, their little paws scrabbling at the smooth wooden floors to try and find purchase. They tumbled over each other, the black one biting out at the white one's ear before they decided to start rubbing themselves against Clary's ankles. "My babies," Clary cooed, reaching down to pick up the first one.

"Those two are mental," Jocelyn grumbled. "I'm going to start dinner, so can you keep them down the other end of the house?"

"Is Nanna Jocie being mean to you? Is she being mean?" Clary rubbed her face against Hunter's fur, and he purred back happily. Jocelyn shot a glare over at Clary at the name and Clary smirked back. "Well, I'm their mummy. That makes you Nanna Jocie. We've been over this."

"Yes," Jocelyn grunted. "And not once was I okay with it."

"Yeah, well, _we're_ okay with it," Clary grinned. The two cats were from the same litter, brother and sister, but there colours were pretty much transposed—along with their personalities. Shadow was the girl, and the older of the two. She was black with white paws and seemed to have a constant case of resting bitch face. Clary loved it, and said that if she had a spirit animal, it would be Shadow. Hunter was the boy, almost all white except for a black spot on the top of his head. Hunter loved everyone and everything, and always had an adorably happy expression on his face.

"Get out of here," Jocelyn rolled her eyes over at them. "Dinner will be ready in about half an hour." Clary picked up Shadow as well, who nestled her way under Clary's chin, while Hunter started patting his paw against his sister. "Oh, and Clary?" Jocelyn looked back over at her daughter.

"Mm?" Clary tilted her head to the side.

"I still want you to look into the gym down the road," she said pointedly. "They do classes, boxing and yoga and all that shit." Clary just huffed under her breath and stalked out of the room.

 _Quick side note. The two cats in here are based on my own two cats. Different names, but the physical description and the personalities are the exact same as my two. Haha._

 _So! Did you like it? Leave me a few words and I'll send a preview x_


	4. Chapter 4

_Hey, guys! Happy New Year! So regular updating will happen from the first of February, but I got this one written so figured I would throw it up here :) I have updated my profile and have my updating schedule there if you guys want to check it out. Anyway, on with the story!_

Clary stared at her reflection in the mirror. She really wasn't sure what kind of 'party' this was, given she was still yet to find somewhere in this town that passed as a club. Even the bar that she had spent a few nights at was only just okay, and even that had almost as many old men with beer bellies as it did younger adults like herself. She had decided to dress a little more conservatively than she would have for an NY party, going with a pair of cut off denim shorts that barely covered her ass, but pairing it with an over-sized shirt that hung down around her thighs. The shirt was partially see through, black with a mixture of lace and leather, and she wore a bright red lacy bra underneath, along with a pair of roman sandals. The make up around her eyes was dark and dusky, and she swiped some lip gloss on her mouth before heading out to the lounge.

"You planning on keeping the corner of the street company?" Jocelyn mocked her with a raised eyebrow.

"Shut up," Clary rolled her eyes and walked around to try and find her phone. Isabelle had got her number off Simon and she had text her earlier to say that she would flick her another text when they were almost at her place. She lifted up Shadow, who gave her a long look of disdain, and Clary grabbed her phone, which was warm from being under the cat. "You need to stop hiding my shit," she grumbled as she put the cat back down. Shadow just continued to fix her with an unhappy stare before she patted her a few times on the head.

"You coming home tonight?" Jocelyn asked.

"Yeah, I think so," Clary murmured as she looked down at her phone.

"Have you got a—"

"We've got a sober driver, don't worry," Clary assured.

"Mm," Jocelyn looked a little worried. "This isn't New York. There isn't a taxi around every corner."

"Mum," Clary raised an eyebrow at her. "I'm fine. I've got it sussed. And I'm twenty two—"

"And still my baby girl," Jocelyn interrupted her.

"It's fine, mum," Clary assured her, walking over to where her mother was seated and dropping a kiss to her forehead. "Simon, this guy I work with, he's a total nerd—like the kind I would beat up if I went to school with him." Jocelyn grinned at that, shaking her head. "And he's completely in love with his girlfriend, who is an absolute babe, and he probably couldn't ever do better than her, so I don't think he wants to risk killing her on the way back."

"Your reasoning is astounding," Jocelyn commented wryly.

"I thought so," Clary grinned and then her phone vibrated in her hand. She looked down at it and then back at her mother. "Okay, they're just around the corner. Don't wait up for me."

"Text me if you need a ride, okay? I'll have my phone right by my bed."

"Mum," Clary laughed. "I thought that I escaped all this protective bullshit when we left Jon behind—" she cut off with a jerk and the smile dropped from Jocelyns face. Clary recovered quicker, clearing her throat and backing up toward the door. "I'll see you later," she mumbled, turning around and heading out the front door. The air outside was already cooling down and it felt good on her cheeks.

That was the first time that either one of them had mentioned Jon's name since being here, and Clary hated that it already felt foreign on her tongue.

Her brother was her best friend, and it had now been four months since she had seen him.

"Clary!" Isabelle shouted out the window from a car that had just pulled up at the curb. It wasn't Simon's car, given he drove a beat up pick up truck, so it must be hers. It suited her as well, a sleek silver convertible, and she waved out at her. "Come on! Let's go!" Clary forced a smiled and walked forward. She got into the backseat and Isabelle instantly spun around, handing her a bottle of vodka.

"Whoah, that's starting pretty abruptly," Clary raised her eyebrow.

"Yeah, well, you look like you need it," Isabelle grinned at her. Clary paused but then nodded, undoing the lid and throwing back a swig. It burnt down her throat and then she winced. She let it settle and then took another one before handing it back. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Clary gave a short nod. She was never one to spill her problems, and she had to be especially careful now, given the circumstances. "Anyway, you guys are going to show me how the small towns do it, right?" She added a slightly jibbing tone to her voice and Isabelle rolled her eyes at her before spinning back around and pointing forward.

"Take us away, Lewis!" She barked out, and Simon shook his head, grinning as he pulled away from the curb.

"She's already had a few," Simon glanced back at Clary as he got to the end of the street and was indicating to turn. "Can you tell?"

"Would never be able to," Clary grinned back at him. Isabelle just laughed and turned the music up louder, and Clary let out a squeal. "I love this song!"

"I fucking know, right?!" Isabelle bounced up and down in her seat again, turning back to look at Clary. She had another swallow of the vodka and offered the bottle back to the red head. Clary took it, and as she drank from it, the night air rushing through her hair and Isabelle's slightly off key singing melding together with the loud voice of Tove Lo, she thought that maybe she would actually have a good time tonight.

* * *

The party was better than she thought it would be—she had to give Isabelle credit there. They had to drive for almost twenty minutes, and Clary was about to ask if they were actually just going to murder her and dump her somewhere in the countryside when she suddenly caught a glimpse of a few cars parked on the side of the road, and then they were turning down a drive way. They drove another five or so minutes, more cars parked on the sides of the drive way and music getting louder as they got closer to the house.

Or mansion, might be a more correct term.

"Shit," Clary breathed and Isabelle wiggled her eyebrows.

"Not bad, right?"

"Not bad at all," Clary agreed. Simon parked and the two girls got out of the car. The vodka bottle was half gone, and as soon as her feet hit the ground, Clary realized just how much she had actually had to drink and her arm flung out to grip Isabelle's. Isabelle laughed and she threw her arm around the shoulders of the shorter girl. There were a couple of boys out the front of the house with one girl standing in the middle. They were sharing a joint, and the girl in the middle was taking turns kissing each of them. Clary's eyebrows raised at Simon, who looked as though he was blushing, and she let out a laugh as she leaned in close to Isabelle. "Is he blushing?"

"He likes to portray this whole pure demeanor," Isabelle smirked before reaching over and slapping her boyfriends ass. "But he's not. I promise you, he's not."

"Izzy!" Simon looked horrified.

"What?" Isabelle blinked at him, the picture of innocence. He just shook his head and lead the way into the house. The music was loud inside, but it kept getting louder as they walked through the big, well lit hallway, and then came out the other side, where the music was loudest. "Alec!" Isabelle squealed and moved away from Clary.

"Alec?" Clary managed to somehow keep her balance, and take a few steps forward without pitching forward, but was very glad for Isabelle's returns support when she came back a second later with a handsome, dark haired boy on her arm.

"This is my brother, Alec," Isabelle introduced. Alec Lightwood gave her a short smile and then looked back at his sister.

"Shit, girl, how much have you had to drink?"

"Only a tiny bit," Isabelle held her thumb and her pointer finger an inch or so apart. Alec just shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Can you go and get us some more drinks? Please?"

"I shouldn't be promoting this bad habit of yours," Alec replied.

"My bad habit of what? Having fun?" Isabelle smirked at him. Alec pursed his lips, and then looked over at Simon, his face suddenly holding no joke anymore, his eyes serious.

"You're sober driving tonight?" He asked. Simon nodded his head once, and behind them, Clary couldn't bit back her snort of laughter at the almost petrified expression on poor Simon's face. "You're not having anything to drink tonight?" Simon shook his head furiously. "You know if you even think about drinking and driving with my sister I will cut your fucking cock off and—"

"I think he gets the picture!" Isabelle cut him off. "You can stop scaring my boyfriend and just go get my drink now, okay, Alec?" Clary watched the older brother walk off to get them drinks and smiled when Isabelle sighed. "Sorry. He get's a little protective at times. But he's not a total dick, honest."

"No, it's sweet," Clary replied. "I know all about the whole big brother routine."

"Oh, you have a brother?" Isabelle looked at her in interest.

"Ah, yeah, something like that," Clary mumbled, realizing her mistake. Isabelle frowned slightly and looked as though she was going to ask something else, but then Alec returned with two drinks. He handed them to the two girls and then said something quietly to Isabelle before heading off down the steps and into the backyard. "Where's he going?" Clary asked, watching as he got lost in the crowd.

"He's finding his boyfriend," Isabelle said idly. Clary blinked in surprise. "What?" The dark haired girl asked bluntly. "You got a problem?"

"No, it's just...He doesn't look gay, or bi, or whatever," Clary answered. Isabelle let out a laugh.

"Oh don't worry, Magnus makes up for all of that," Isabelle said with a grin. _Worth It_ started playing and Isabelle started bouncing up and down, swaying her hips from side to side and tossing her hair. She didn't care that she was spilling her drink over her hand and onto the wooden deck, and Clary loved it. Isabelle was exactly what she needed right now, and so she threw back the rest of the her drink quickly, reveling in the rush of alcohol and laughing as she tossed the plastic cup aside and danced with Isabelle.

The scene was definitely different from the clubs back home, and the parties in the pent houses that she would go to, but it would do for now.

A couple of other girls, including Aline, came over to dance with them, and then Isabelle dragged a very uncomfortable looking Simon onto the dance floor. A cute boy came over to dance with Clary, and it felt good to have his warm arms round her waist. But tonight wasn't about getting laid, so after a couple of songs, she gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek and then headed inside to find the toilet, Isabelle in tow.

"Jordan seems to like you," Isabelle called through the bathroom door as she waited for Clary to be finished inside.

"I'm not really feeling that tonight," Clary called back.

"Too bad," Isabelle laughed. "He had a hard on for you." Clary shook her head from inside the toilet. She finished and washed her hands, coming back out and tilting her head to the side as she looked Isabelle up and down.

"You tryna pimp me out or something, Iz?" She joked.

"Maybe," Isabelle winked before laughing. "Come on, let's head back out." They managed to get back down the steps without falling head first, although Clary was wondering how they managed it. She was used to drinking a lot, but tonight was on the extreme side even for her. She blamed it on Isabelle, who was practically feeding her drinks. She was lost in her thoughts when her foot got hooked on rubbish on the ground and she almost went sprawling forward except an arm wrapped around her waist and caught her.

"Hey, are you okay?" Came a voice that Clary vaguely recognized. When she straightened up, she swung her gaze to the man standing next to her and raised an eyebrow.

"This is Sebastian," Isabelle said, not sounding too happy.

"Hi," Clary smiled at him in a way that she hoped didn't make her look too plastered. "I'm Clary—"

"And we're just off to get another drink," Isabelle tried to move them along but Sebastian Verlac side stepped so that he was standing in front of them and blocking their path.

"Come on, cuz. Rushing off so soon?" He gave her a slow smile that Isabelle clearly didn't like.

"Cuz? You guys are cousins?!" Clary let out a huff as she looked between the two. "Shit, is everyone in your family fucking hot?!" Sebastian laughed and looked like he wanted to say something, but then Isabelle was dragging Clary around the tall man and toward the long bench where the drinks were. The bottles were almost all messy, and the bench was sticky with spilled liquid—it was a good thing the two girls were both too drunk to care. "What's your issue with him?" Clary asked as Isabelle poured them both drinks and handed her one, the pink contents sloshing over the side.

"He's just an asshole," Isabelle shrugged. "Anyway, he's only my step-cousin..." she continued to blab on, but Clary's attention was already wandering, her eyes finding someone that she had trying to tell herself that she didn't want to see.

Golden Boy.

And probably his Golden Girlfriend.

They were sitting on one of the outdoor armchairs, her on his lap with her arm around his neck, laughing as the pair of them talked to Alec and another guy who must be his boyfriend, because they were both standing pretty close. Isabelle was still talking, but Clary couldn't drag her eyes away from him.

He was an asshole.

And he was arrogant; the way he was holding himself made that clear.

So why the fuck couldn't she stop looking at him?

It was as though he sensed her eyes on him, because he looked over in her direction. His eyes narrowed as they locked with hers and Clary felt her own body prickle in response. There was an expression she couldn't really place on his face, but she knew she didn't really like it. He kept his eyes on hers as he put his finger under the girls chin and turned her face toward his. She seemed more than eager to comply, turning her head and pressing her mouth against his. He kissed her long and slow, his head canted to the side and his eyes never leaving Clary's as his lips moved against his girls, and she tightened her fingers around the plastic cup in her hand.

It was ridiculous, but her stomach was actually turning over and squeezing at the heat that she could see sparking in the golden eyes of probably the most pretentious man she knew.

"Clary? Clary!" Isabelle was nudging her in the side.

"Uh, what?" Clary shook her head, blinking, and turned back to Isabelle.

"What's going on there?" Isabelle frowned between Clary and the Golden Boy.

"Nothing," Clary downed half her drink and then threw the rest onto the grass. "I need a smoke. You want to come?"

 _So? What do you guys think?_

 _Please leave a review, even if it's only a few words. It makes the stress and time that goes into these chapters all the more worthwhile :)_

 _xx_


	5. Chapter 5

_Hey, guys! Thanks so much for your response to this story so far! I'm glad you're all enjoying it, and thanks for your reviews :) Oh, and the Darth Vader shirt that Simon is wearing in this chapter? It's one that I've got ;)_

Simon bounced around the kitchen, looking as cheerful as he usually did as he flipped a burger patty and then looked over his shoulder to where both Aline and Clary were sitting in the back of the kitchen, hunched over the tiny staff table with their heads in their hands. They had been open for almost two hours now, and while both girls were pretty accustomed to working with hangovers, neither of them were coping very well. Aline had already thrown up twice and Clary kept getting her words muddled up when welcoming customers.

"Orders up!" Simon announced as he finished off the latest order.

"Shush!" Aline groaned.

"Do you have to talk so loud?!" Clary scolded. "Geez." Simon just grinned and started whistling, snatching the next order up off the counter and reading it over before starting on it. "It's your turn," she muttered, closing her eyes again and dropping her head into her arms, which were folded on the table.

"Yeah, I got it, I got it," Aline got up, almost tripping over her feet as she blindly stumbled over to where Simon had put down the plate of food. She started toward the swinging door that separated the kitchen from the actual restaurant itself and disappeared. Clary let out another low groan and reached out for the vitamin water, taking a long drink before screwing the lid back on and pushing it away.

"How much did you drink last night?" Simon asked.

"Okay, first of all, you need to lower your tone," Clary hissed. "Inside voices, yeah?" Simon smirked.

"Alright," Simon said in a stage-whisper. "How much did you drink last night?"

"I lost count," Clary admitted. "Your girlfriend just sort of kept them coming."

"Yeah, she's good like that," Simon shrugged as he flipped the omelette he had thrown together. "And the worse thing is, she doesn't even get hangovers." Clary looked over at him and narrowed her eyes.

"What?" She snapped.

"Yeah," Simon shrugged again, nonchalantly. "I've never seen her with a hangover."

"Oh for fucks sakes," Clary grumbled. "Guess that's lucky for some. Does she have some sort of cure that she can share with the rest of us mortals?"

"Nope," he shook his head with a pained look. "I remember the first time I got properly drunk. We were seventeen. Izzy and her brother and her cousin always used to go to parties and stuff, but before I started going out with Izzy, I was just this nerdy guy who stayed in on Saturday nights and barely talked to anyone that wasn't online." Clary raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly at the shirt he was wearing, which read _Who's Your Daddy?_ with a picture of Darth Vader.

"I don't find that hard to believe at all," she mocked him lightly.

"Whatever," Simon sent her a faux-annoyed look before continuing. "Anyway, I got drunk and I thought I was going to die the next day, and Izzy was all perfect and bouncing around and listening to some stupid Britney Spears song and she was fine. Her brother and cousin were crap as well, so it's not even some genetic's thing. She's just...Immune."

"Bitch," Clary grunted out.

"Oi, you have a customer," Simon told her, looking through the gap in the wall.

"Oh the joys," Clary muttered, getting up from the table she was at and taking off her sunglasses, which she had barely parted with all morning, except when she was serving customers. Simon noted that she didn't actually look hungover, despite how her eyes were a little bloodshot and her eyelids were heavy. She had her usual high heels on, although he still didn't understand why she insisted on wearing, and her make up, with the bright red lips and the heavy black eye make up. Simon had to admit, though, she made the uniform look better. "Welcome to Taki's, how help you can I?"

Simon almost lost his shit at the monotone mix-up of Clary's words, letting out a snort.

"Not feeling too great after last night, aye?" Came a man's voice, and Clary blinked to try and actually focus on the person in front of her. It was Isabelle's cousin from last night—or her step-cousin, as she had corrected her pointedly. "Clary, right?" Sebastian said with a confident smirk. "I met you at the party last night."

"Yeah, I saw you around," Clary raised an eyebrow. She really was not in the mood for some weird kind of back and forth this morning. "What can I get you?"

"Uh, if I can have a mango and strawberry milkshake and a cheeseburger?" He asked, his eyes scanning her over. Clary felt herself straighten up and arch her back subtly. Just because she wasn't in the mood to flirt with him, didn't mean she couldn't enjoy the appreciation that was in his eyes. It always boosted a girls mood a little to have a hot guy check you out.

"Sure, that's..." she tapped her fingers against the screen. "Seven forty," she told him.

"Sure thing," Sebastian pulled out his wallet and handed over a note. She opened the cash register and gave him the change before walking over to the gap in the wall and looking through to where Simon was cooking.

"And are you going to be eating in today, or taking away?"

"Take away."

"Cheeseburger, please," she said and Simon nodded. "And in a takeaway bag." Clary clicked her way down to the other end of the counter where the milkshake machine was. She filled a plastic cup, snapped on the lid and then turned back to Sebastian. He had moved down the counter to follow her, and when she spun around on the heel of her shoe, he quickly lifted his eyes to look up at her face, rather than her ass. Clary raised an eyebrow pointedly and he just gave her a charming smile which Clary guessed was his way to get away with a lot. "Your burger will be ready soon," she told him.

"Great, gives us a few minutes to talk," Sebastian picked up a straw and unwrapped it, stabbing it into the thick drink and taking a sip.

"What makes you think I have time to talk?" Clary tilted her head to the side.

"Well this place isn't exactly busy right now," Sebastian looked around the restaurant, to the two customers that were sitting on the far side. Aline was refilling the serviette containers, but she was taking a long time, looking as though she was literally putting one serviette at a time into the container. Every few seconds, her head was tilting forward and it looked as though she was fighting to stay awake. Clary sighed and looked back at Sebastian.

"What do you want to talk about?" She asked him, not sounding particularly interested, but knowing deep down that she wasn't going to walk away from this guy. He was gorgeous, and he was definitely the kind of guy that she would usually go after. Over confident and hot. It was kind of her stereotype.

"How long have you been here?"

"Not long," Clary replied. "About a month."

"I'm surprised I haven't seen you around before," Sebastian noted.

"I've seen you around," Clary told him. "At the bar."

"Oh really? And you never wanted to come over and say 'hi'?" Sebastian asked her.

"You always seemed a little busy," Clary said pointedly. "You've always got a little huddle going on around you." Sebastian gave her another lazy smirk.

"Right, right," he grinned and nodded.

"Order up!" Simon called from the kitchen, handing the bag through the gap to Clary. She took it from him and then turned back to Sebastian.

"Here you go," she said, handing it over.

"Thanks," Sebastian took it from her, but still hesitated before leaving. "So I'll be seeing you around more, right?"

"I'm not planning on going anywhere," she told him off-handedly. Sebastian grinned one last time at her and then headed out the front door, the bell jingling as he left. Clary watched him go, pursing her lips for a moment before looking over at Aline, who had stopped pretending to stock up the serviette's and was now just staring blankly over in the red-heads direction. "Are you even still awake?" Clary called, wiggling her fingers a few times. Aline made an unhappy noise at the back of her throat and got up from the table, walking over to the counter.

"Working on Saturday mornings is not a good plan," Aline groaned.

"I can fucking agree with that," Clary muttered. "Who usually takes this shift?"

"It's a couple of girls who go to school, so they're just part time. But it's exam season, so they've taken the past few weekends off," Aline said. "But don't worry, they're back next weekend, so then we'll only be working the week shifts."

"Thank fuck for that," Clary growled.

"Do we still have any vitamin water left?" Aline asked.

"Dude," Clary stated. "I brought eight bottles on the way in this morning. We are set for the rest of the day." The two girls walked back into the kitchen area and Simon turned to face them, crossing his arms over his chest. Clary finished off almost a whole bottle of the wildberry vitamin water before sending a curious look in Simon's direction. "What crawled up your ass and died?"

"I don't like Sebastian," he stated.

"Not many people like Sebastian," Aline added as she walked toward the massive walk in freezer at the other end of the kitchen. "He's kind of an asshole."

"So?" Clary shrugged.

"What do you mean 'so'? You were out there flirting with him," Simon looked like a disapproving parent. Or Jonathon, her brother. Clary kind of liked that and she couldn't stop the smile that pulled at her mouth.

"It's just flirting, it's not like I'm getting ready to marry the guy," Clary smirked at him.

"Good, because he's a douchebag," Simon said vehemently.

"Ohmygod! You really don't like him, do you?" Clary looked over at him. "Why not?"

"He's just...He doesn't care about anyone but himself," Simon said. "The only reason that I can believe that he's related to someone like Izzy, who cares way too much about other people, is through marriage, and that's exactly the case. He just uses girls and then drops them."

"You don't think I can handle myself?" Clary asked, walking over to him and punching him lightly in the arm. "You don't know me very well—I'm very good at looking after myself."

"I can imagine," Simon made a face as he looked her up and down. "I've seen you handle angry customers—you're kind of scary."

"I second that!" Aline called from the walk in freezer, which she emerged from a few seconds later with three cheesecakes in her hands.

"Ooh," Simon grinned and walked over to take one of them from her hands. Aline tossed Clary the other one and the red head caught it.

"Look, I know guys like Sebastian—I've been dealing with them all my life," Clary said as Simon handed out spoons. "They're good in bed but they're terrible as friends or anything more. But I'm not after anything else. I definitely don't want anything serious, I just want to have some fun, and he's exactly the kind of guy that I can do that with."

And also a good way to distract her from the Golden Boy.

 _OMG, by the way; has every seen the new_ Wonder Woman _clips? Does Gal Gadot look like a complete babe, or what?_

 _Oh, and how do we feel about Miley and Liam being back together? Yes, I'm completely aware she's a crazy bitch, but I fucking love her, and I was totally rooting for that couple ;)_

 _So what did you guys think of the chapter? Please review and let me know what you think, and Ill send ya a preview ;) x_


	6. Chapter 6

_Hey, my beautiful people! Thank you so much for your love and reviews for the past chapter. I hope that continues! The movies used in this chapter are a couple of my favourite Disney movies, although definitely not limited just to these, of course._

 _Disney movies are life, guys._ Life, _I tell you!_

Clary didn't do anything on Saturday night; it wasn't like New York when she knew almost everyone down her street and could get lost at a hundred different bars and meeting a hundred new people. She was happy to stay in, though, with her cats, and watch a couple of Disney movies. She started with _Mulan_ , and then went back even older with _The Little Mermaid._ Shadow and Hunter were climbing all over her, rubbing their faces against her cheek before finally settling down on either side of her. Jocelyn had a work dinner, and she had invited Clary, but her daughter had said she would rather stay home.

The truth was, she needed some down time. It had become a bit of a bad habit, but over the past few months, almost every night, she drunk before she went to sleep.

She didn't tell Jocelyn how much she had been drinking, because she would only worry. Back home, they would drink almost every day anyway, it just sort of came with the territory, but now she was almost relying on it to help her get to sleep, to stop herself from thinking too much. If she told her mother how much she was drinking, she would flip out, because her father always drank too much and that lead to...That lead to a number of bad things.

She wasn't an alcoholic, she was careful. She made sure she didn't drink every night. Just most. It's just the nightmares she got left her feeling shaky and drained, and filled her with this horrible sense of dread that would weigh her down throughout the day. And she couldn't live like that; she wasn't someone who could stomach being scared. She wasn't raised that way. And it wasn't like she got completely drunk, it was just enough to lull her brain into the false sense of security that the Suits kept telling her they were in. It scared her that she might end up relying on it, and it had now been four months since they left—one month since they were in this town. It might be time for her to start trusting that the Suits knew what they were doing.

Anyway, she couldn't justify watching Disney movies and drinking vodka, so tonight it was just her, her babies and Disney.

After the third movie, _The Fox and the Hound_ , Clary looked up at the time and saw it was just after eleven, and she was pretty tired, given she had been out late last night and then working most of the day today. So she turned off the lights, checked the locks on the windows and the doors for the third time that evening, and then headed to bed. Shadow and Hunter padded after her, Hunter all cute and nice, rubbing up against her legs like he always did, and Shadow a little more hesitant, always with a put out expression on her face, her nose in the air, as though getting ready to curl up on a soft bed was the most annoying thing in the world.

She brushed her teeth and plaited her hair, and then climbed into bed, wearing underwear and a singlet, and idly patted Hunter, who always curled up next to her neck. Her mind went back to last night; first to Isabelle, who she actually really liked. Clary liked her own company, but she was still very used to be surrounded by people, and she kind of missed that, being here. It wasn't as though she could ever tell Isabelle what was going on with her, but she seemed like the type of girl that she could be friends with. Same with Aline. Same with Simon.

If she was going to have to start over again here, with them, then maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

Of course there was Jace and Sebastian as well. Sebastian was simple enough; Simon and Aline's reactions had only confirmed what she had thought from her first impressions of him. He was a good looking asshole, only thought about himself, but would be fun to run around with for a few weeks while she figured herself out.

Jace, though...Jace was confusing.

And she didn't want confusing.

So she was just going to ignore him.

And ignore that weird little squeeze that she got in her stomach when she thought about him and all that golden that surrounded him.

* * *

Jace took in a deep breath through his nose as he got out of his black Corvette C6, pulling out his gym bag from the back seat and absent-mindedly pressing the button to lock the doors as he walked toward the gym doors. It was just after six on Sunday morning, and the gym was usually completely empty until almost lunch time. Which was perfect, because he hated working out while there were other people there. Not because he felt self-conscious, _hell_ , he had absolutely _nothing_ to be self-conscious about, and he knew that. But he hated it when there were girls there who wore ridiculous amounts of make up and just walked at a 'brisk pace' on the treadmill, or other men who wanted to brag about how much they were lifting, wearing ridiculously tight fitting muscle shirts.

No.

He liked being there alone.

Jace used his swipe card to get in and walked down the dark hallway toward the main gym. There were a few side rooms where yoga or dance classes were taken through the week, and then there were the changing rooms, but Jace had already come prepared in a pair of sweatpants and a wife beater. He pulled his iPod and headphones out of his pocket, getting ready to start up his working out playlist when he noticed one of the lights was already on in the gym. He frowned, pursing his lips together in annoyance as he realized he was going to need to share his work out space.

Whoever it was was completely absorbed in what they were doing, attacking the punching bag relentlessly. Jace took a few steps into the darkened gym, making sure to keep to the shadows of the sides of the room, narrowing his eyes as he tried to recognize who it was. He had been coming here at this time in the morning for almost two years now, and there had only been two occasions when there had been someone else here. His body jerked as he recognized the girl, and he raised his eyebrows in surprise.

The red head.

Clary.

That's what he had heard her called on Friday night.

She had been at the party with Isabelle the other night, and then there had been the two previous times that he had met her. She was gorgeous, and she was feisty, and she made him feel simultaneously annoyed and intrigued every time he saw her. Maybe that was why he kind of gave her a little show the other night—he wanted to see what her reaction would be. He had actually been a bit disappointed, by the way that she had twisted on her heel and walked off, Isabelle close behind her. He didn't know what he had been expecting, but he had been hoping for something a little bit more.

And now he was here, completely alone with her, and he knew that there was no way anyone else was going to interrupt them for at least another few hours. So he was undecided, as to whether he was going to go in there and work out as normal, trying to ignore her, or approach her, and say something to her. What he would say, he had no idea. In the end, he stayed in the shadows of the gym and sucked his lower lip into his mouth, watching her.

She had a pair of yoga pants and a sports bra on, and she had her hair pulled back in a ponytail, a couple of loose strands hanging around her face. She had boxing gloves strapped on and even from this distance he could see that her face was red and she was breathing hard. He narrowed his eyes as he watched her throw her fist forward with surprising force, sending the bag swinging forward. She let out short breaths through pursed lips as she jabbed at the punching bag. Jace's eyebrows raised as she delivered another strong cross, rotating her body and shifting her weight perfectly.

Clearly she had been trained to do this, and there was something about a woman who knew how to handle themselves that made them ten times hotter.

Which was not a good thing, because he was trying to pretend that he knew nothing about her. He didn't want to get involved with her, because from the couple of minutes that he had interacted with her, he could tell that things with her would only be complicated. And he was not down for complicated. He did not have _time_ for complicated.

When she stopped, she took in another deep breath and turned around to pick up a bottle of water, Jace quickly walked out of the gym.

He would come back later.

* * *

"Jace!" There was a rap on his door, but Jace didn't bother leaving his kitchen, because he recognized the voice, and he knew that she would just walk right in even though she had knocked. He continued chopping up the vegetables on the wooden board before he heard clicking of heels coming down the hall and a moment later, Isabelle appeared in the doorway. "Hey, Jace."

"Hey," Jace gave her a quick smile. "Good to see you're still respecting my personal space."

"What personal space?" Isabelle shrugged and smirked. "Ooh, what you making?" She asked as she came over to where he was standing, picking up a piece of sliced carrot and putting it into her mouth.

"Stir fry," he replied, narrowing his eyes and smacking her hand as she tried to grab another one. "Are you planning on staying?" He asked pointedly, moving to block her as she tried to grab another carrot.

"Nope," Isabelle popped the 'p' and rested against the bench. "I'm just here to talk to you about something."

"And what's that, cuz?" Jace asked as he tipped the vegetables into the frying pan. Isabelle managed to snatch a slice of capsicum before lifting herself up onto the island and swinging her legs. Jace gave her a narrow eyed look as she bumped her heels against the bench, leaving scuff marks behind. "You know I don't like it when you do that."

"Tough luck," Isabelle stuck her tongue out playfully at him. "You're too uptight. Anyway," she tilted her head to the side. "The reason that I'm here—Clary."

"Clary?" Jace faltered slightly before swallowing nervously and going back to stirring his simmering lunch. "What about her?"

"I like her," Isabelle said.

"What's that got to do with me?"

"I honestly have no fucking idea," Isabelle replied with a raised eyebrow. "But you've clearly met her, and you did some weird, eye fucking thing with her at the party the other night while you were making out with your hoe." Jace gave her a hard look but she didn't apologize, as per usual, and just continued talking. "Anyway, I like her. And I don't want you making her feel weird or uncomfortable or messing with her head."

"I don't know her, and I don't plan on getting to know her. I've got enough to worry about," Jace told her bluntly.

"Yes, yes—so much in your perfect, cookie-cutter world," Isabelle teased him lightly. "Okay, so you're going to leave her alone?" she confirmed.

"I'm going to leave her alone," Jace answered, surprised at how easily the words came out of his mouth despite the mess that was going on in his head right now. How the hell could a girl that he had met three times be bouncing around in his mind so much? He was good at disengaging from people, that was how he had almost always operated.

So why the hell did Clary and her bright green eyes keep appearing behind his eyelids?

 _So...We like? Yus? Leave me a review and I'll send you a preview?_

 _Ooh and did everyone catch_ Grease Live _? Or even if you didn't, just the songs themselves? Julianne Hough was pretty perfect as Sandy, but, shit. V Hudgens kinda blew me away with Rizzo! I was a little nervous when I first saw she was playing the role because Rizzo was always my absolute fave, but she did an incredible job! Especially with everything going on in her personal life :(_

 _And guess where I'm off to next weekend?_ Deadpool, _whoop whoop whoop. F Valentines Day, me and my hubby have a date with burgers and Ryan Reynolds in a skin tight suit ;)_


	7. Chapter 7

_We've got a bit of background coming in this chapter. Also, I've had quite a few people who have asked me when the lemons are going to start. This story is a bit of a slow burn. If you guys want something faster paced, check out_ Hearts Gone Wrong _. We've already got lemons in there ;)_

Clary didn't shower in the public ones at the gym, she hated those things. Despite being the only one at the gym, and even though it was unlikely that anyone else would come while she was in there, she couldn't stand the idea of hundreds of nameless, sweaty feet on the ground before her. So she pulled the band out of her hair, gathering up all of her hair, including the strands that had fallen out, and tying it all into a knot on top of her head, and pulled on a hoodie over her sweaty sports bra.

She'd had another nightmare last night.

She kind of knew that it was going to happen.

It was pretty normal for her now.

She woke up sometime just after one, when Jocelyn was coming in, trying to be quiet as she locked the door behind her and walked down the hallway to her bedroom. Unlike their home back in New York, though, this place wasn't carpeted, and almost every footstep let out a squeak through the old house. It took her a while to get back to sleep, but Hunter's rhythmic purring beside her ear and Shadow's warmth curled at her side managed to lull her back into a slumber.

The next time she woke up, there was a tiny bit of light coming through her curtains, and she knew that she wasn't going to be able to get back to sleep. It was raining again, completely unsurprisingly, and she sighed as she heard a long meow from Hunter, who wanted to go outside. The time on her phone told her it had just gone on five, which was becoming her regular wake up time, when she hadn't been working until late the night before. She had taken Jocelyn's advice the other day, and gone to the gym, grateful that they gave out key cards to give them access after hours, because she hated working out when there were other people there.

Men just always seemed to stare.

And while she revelled in that when it helped her get her way, she didn't like it when she just wanted to blend into the background.

And she was already almost always feeling tense, stressed out and tired these days, so the slightest look sideways had the possibility of setting her off. Jocelyn had been right about that. Sometimes at work she had to fight the urge to send a knife flying across the room and into the back of an asshole customer who had been simultaneously flirting and being lewdly rude to her when she had been taking their order.

So getting back into boxing was probably a good thing, and doing it at five on a Sunday morning was probably a good time.

When Clary got home, it was almost eight, and there was a black Mercedes parked outside their place. Saying that she was in a good mood after beating up the punching bag at the gym might not be the proper wording, but she definitely felt more relaxed, and that was all disappearing right out the window as soon as she saw that car.

The Suits.

Hardly anything good ever came from them being around.

Except for how her mother seemed to get all smiley because of the younger one.

"We were just dropping by to make sure everything was okay," the older Suit was saying as Clary walked in the front door. Hunter immediately sprinted over to her, skidding across the wooden floors, and rubbing up against her legs, but Shadow was nowhere in sight. That was to be expected, because Shadow was a bitch, and hated pretty much everyone.

That was what made Clary love her so much.

"Clary?" Jocelyn called out. "Is that you?"

"Yeah, mum," Clary sighed as she kicked off her shoes. She had been hoping that she would be able to sneak down the hall to her room without being seen, but no such luck. She picked up Hunter, who rested his little white paws on her shoulder and started purring as though he was exactly where he belonged, and walked into the lounge. Jocelyn looked exhausted, sitting on the arm chair wearing her silk dressing gown with her hair piled on top of her head, and the two Suits were on the couch, wearing, well, suits.

"Good morning, Clarissa," Hodge Starkweather gave her a tight smile when she came into the room. "Have you been out for a run?"

"I've been at the gym," she said shortly. Jocelyn gave her a sharp look, obviously trying to get her to be polite, so Clary took in a shaky breath and forced herself to smile, although from the raised eyebrow from her mother, she assumed it came out more like a grimace. "This is pretty early for you guys," she commented as she walked over to where Jocelyn was sitting, perching on the arm of the chair. "What's got your panties in a bunch?" There was another sharp look from the older woman, but the corner of her mouth twitched upward at her daughters straightforward question.

"Wanted to know that you two were keeping up appearances," Hodge began in his usual no-nonsense manner. "That you hadn't said anything you weren't supposed to."

"We're not idiots," Clary grunted, not looking impressed with his tone.

"We just wanted to check up on you, make sure that you two were comfortable and things were going well with settling in," Luke Garroway continued, his eyes a little more relaxed than the pinched expression on his partners face. "How are you enjoying your job, Clary?"

"I'm serving disgusting, greasy burgers in a dead end town. It's everything I ever dreamed of," she said in a sarcastically up-beat tone. This time she almost got a smile out of Luke, before he shifted his eyes back to Jocelyn.

"And what about you?" He asked, his voice a little softer this time. Clary felt her body relax slightly as she looked at her mother. "How's the job?"

"I guess it's okay," Jocelyn shrugged. "For now."

"Still the most colourful one there?" He asked with an amused gleam in his eye. Jocelyn smiled right back at him, as she nodded.

"Of course," she nodded. "Who do you think I am?"

"Just remember that you do not want to be drawing attention to yourself," Hodge reminded them, his voice curt. "You're in this town to blend in, not to make a statement. This isn't New York, and you need to act accordingly."

"It doesn't matter where I live, I'm not going to dress in full blacks and greys," Jocelyn's smile disappeared straight away as she looked back at Hodge. "I don't remember signing up to be a boring old maid when agreeing to rat on my husband, and even if I had, I would have been lying straight to your face."

"And on that note," Luke quickly said, before Hodge could reply. "I think that we should be off."

"Long way to drive for such a short visit," Clary noted.

"You're one of our most important clients," Luke stood up and straightened out his suit jacket, doing up the two central buttons. "You know that we're only a phone call away." Clary didn't say anything, just pursed her lips together and watched as Hodge stood up as well, that perpetually unhappy expression on his face. "You two have a good day," he nodded first at Clary, and then smiled at Jocelyn, his face softening. "Jocelyn," he murmured, before turning on his heel and walking out of the room. Hodge didn't say anything, just shuffled out after his partner. The door closed a few moments later, and then Shadow appeared, the black cat bounding over to the windows and glaring outside, making a little growling noise at the back of her throat.

"If only she was a dog," Jocelyn said wryly.

"Don't tempt me, ma," Clary rolled her eyes. "I might just adopt a third pet and sic it on them when they come up."

"But not Luke," Jocelyn said playfully.

"Fine, but only because you two have such great sexual tension," Clary smirked. Jocelyn rolled her eyes and walked into the kitchen, pulling her dressing gown tightly around her. "Did you even know that they were coming today?" Clary asked as she put Hunter down on the ground, who walked over and joined Shadow at the window, the pair of them like ying and yang, their tails curled around each other.

"Luke called me the other day, said that they would be up this weekend," Jocelyn said as she turned on the coffee machine. "But I didn't think it was going to be quite this early."

"Kinda rude, isn't it? We're supposed to be acting all normal and shit. Wouldn't that mean going out on a Saturday night and being dead to the world on a Sunday morning?" Clary asked as she sat down at the kitchen table and pulled her knees up against her chest, resting her chin on them. Jocelyn didn't say anything as she got two mugs out of the cupboard and then got out milk and sugar. "You like him," she stated, her voice tentative.

"Luke?" Jocelyn didn't beat around the bush. "Yeah. But it's not like it matters."

"Why not?" Clary asked.

"You know why not," Jocelyn sighed, and gave Clary an almost sad look, that made her daughter regret even mentioning the man. "I don't want to talk about this."

"Yeah, I get it," Clary murmured, looking toward the window where her two cats were now play fighting along the back of the couch. "So you were out late last night?"

"I had fun," Jocelyn grinned, clearly relieved by the turn of the conversation. "I mean, the accountants themselves are boring, but there's an older lady who is an assistant for the boss, and she's fucking hilarious, and then there's the secretary. She's a young girl—maybe around your age, and she was there with her boyfriend. Actually," she tilted her head to the side. "Maybe I should introduce you."

"I'm perfectly capable of making my own friends," Clary poked her tongue out at Jocelyn. "But if for some reason I end up desperate, I'll let you know, and you can set up a play date." Jocelyn poked her tongue out in response as she began pouring coffee for both of them, talking about a movie that was going to be on TV that afternoon.

* * *

Over half a country away, in an expensively decorated room that was thrown into dank shadows by the way the curtains were all closed and none of the lights were on, stood a man with a vicious look on his face. Valentine Morgenstern spun on his heel to glare at the two men who were in the doorway, both exchanging looks.

"So you can't find either of them?" He spat at them. They shook their heads simultaneously. "You can't find two fucking women? _Two stupid women?!_ What kind of men are you?" His mood was flipping almost instantly, just like Jonathon Morgenstern had worried that it would, and he stepped forward.

"Dad," he said quietly. Valentine spun his eyes over to him and then let out an angry shout, storming to the back of the room and pulling a knife out of it's sheath at his side, stabbing it into the painting. Jonathon cringed as Valentine stabbed the painting over and over again, shredding the abstract art that his sister had given his father as a gift a year or so ago to pieces.

 _So pretties, I have a new idea. I'm going to do a sort of alphabet songfic oneshot story. So each chapter will stand for each letter, working through from A - Z. Aaaaand the requests for each song are up to you guys :) Some of the letters have already been taken, because I've discussed this idea with a couple of people, but the rest are all up to you! So you can either send through requests in your reviews, or in PM, and let me know what ships you would want. I'm mainly Clace, Sizzy and Malec, but I don't mind trying my hand at other TMI ships._

 _You guys interested?_

 _Let me know :)_

 _And as always. A preview for a review :)_


	8. Chapter 8

_So there were quite a few questions about this chapter, especially after the preview. Hahaha. Here we go, I hope you guys enjoy it._

It was about a week and a half later when Sebastian walked into Taki's Diner next. Clary had just started a shift, and it was only going to be a short one—she was off by three—and so she knew she looked and smelt good. The greasiness of the diner hadn't set in yet. Her hair was swept up in a messy bun, with a couple of strands falling around her face, and her lips were lined in dark red with her eyes rimmed in black and the lids shadowed. She was wearing another pair of excruciatingly high heels, that made her calves and ass look amazing, and her high waisted skirt was even higher, sticking to the tops of her curvy thighs.

Sebastian's eyes were on her the instant, and Clary licked her tongue along her lower lip, watching as he followed the movement before smirking and meeting her eyes again.

"Morning, Clary," he dragged out her name as he came over to stand at the counter, resting both hands in front of the till where she was standing.

"Morning," she replied curtly, making sure she didn't look too interested in him. She lifted an eyebrow and drummed her fingers against the side of the till as though impatient. "What can I get you today?"

"I'm actually here for you," he told her, that smarmy look on his face. It was kind of ridiculous really; just how attractive this guy thought he was. Yes, he _was_ attractive, but nowhere near the best looking man she had ever seen. And nowhere near as hot as he _thought_ he was. His attitude rivalled the men back in NY who used to hit on her in expensive bars, inviting her back to their private rooms or penthouse suites. Of course, she had to keep reminding herself that this wasn't New York. This was the corner of Fuck All Place and Dead End Street, and it could be a long time before she got back to where she wanted to be.

"And what is it you want from me?" She continued, not making it easy on him, but she knew exactly what it was he was after.

"I want to take you out for a date," he told her confidently. "For dinner. At _Karens_." _Karens_ was a cute little restaurant in town. Clary had gone there a couple of times to pick things up for lunch, but she had never actually sat down and ordered a meal there.

"A date?" She let her lips twist upwards in a mocking smirk. "Are you sure that's what you want?" Sebastian grinned, following her line of thought, but he just nodded. "Okay. When?"

"Tomorrow night?" He asked. "I can pick you up from your place or meet you there."

"I'll meet you there. Sounds like a plan," Clary sighed and arched her eyebrows pointedly. "So are you actually going to order, or was that everything I can help you with today?"

"That was everything," Sebastian didn't look put off by her attitude and was still grinning as he backed toward the door, side-stepping to get around a couple of customers who were coming in. "I'll see you tomorrow, Clary."

She saved it until she was turned toward the milkshake machine before she let a grin break out across her face.

* * *

There was a cute little lingerie boutique on the other side of town. She had driven past it a couple of times but she had never gone inside before. It looked like one of those places that blew out their prices, and she really wasn't living in the same sort of life that she was before when she just had money to waste on a lace thong. But Aline had said that her girlfriend ran the place, and she would send her a text to give her a good price on anything she picked out. Admittedly, Aline hadn't been too happy about _why_ Clary actually needed new lingerie, but she didn't say anything.

Simon gave her a few pointed looks, reminding her for the umpteenth time that he wasn't Sebastian's biggest fan.

It was actually kind of cute.

Reminded her of Jonathon.

Or at least, a tamer version of Jonathon, because Simon wasn't threatening to break someone's nose or cut off someone's fingers if they treated her wrong.

Clary walked into the boutqiue and was glad that there was no one else there, except for the pretty girl behind the counter, who grinned when she saw her.

"Hey," she greeted her. "You're Clary, right?"

"Yeah, I am," Clary walked over to the counter slowly, looking around. The lingerie was all gorgeous, and while it was on the higher end of the price range, it was nowhere near as expensive as it could get back in the city. She reached the counter and gave the girl behind it a smile. "And you're Aline's girlfriend?"

"Helen," Helen Blackthorn said with a grin. "Aline told me you would be coming over, but I recognize you from the party the other weekend. You were there with Izzy."

"Yeah," Clary nodded.

"Okay, well, do you need any help or anything? Or you just want to look around?" Helen offered.

"I'll just look around," Clary said.

"Great," Helen nodded over to the computer where she had been standing when Clary had first walked into the store. "The changing rooms are just back there, and just let me know if you need anything." Clary smiled and then turned back to look around the store. She had been thinking about the date in her head throughout her shift, and she had a pretty good idea about what she was going to wear. She had a tiny black, strapless dress, that gave her an absolutely sinful hourglass figure, which she was going to pair with a cropped jacket and a pair of high heels. Since it was strapless, she was going to be looking for a corset, or something similar. There was a rack near the back of the room; deep red, a shade or so darker than the colour her hair was dyed, with black lacing. She found another similar two that she liked, in different colours, and grabbed them both, heading toward the changing rooms.

* * *

"Come on, Jace," Kaelie was grinning at him, linking their fingers together and pulling him toward _Laced Up_ , a little lingerie store nestled between a soap and candle store and a gift shop. Jace cringed, not liking the idea of going shopping with the girl. That was something he did his best to avoid—especially with Isabelle, who could go for hours. "I'll let you pick something out," she sung out with a cheeky smile. "And then I'll wear it for you when we go back to my place."

Well, that was news to him.

He didn't realize that they were going back to her place.

He wasn't even aware that their after lunch meeting was going to be anything more than a quickie.

"I should really get back to work," he began.

"Aw, come on, Jace," Kaelie pouted, and her fingers tightened around his. Jace hesitated, but then he saw the smile start to drop from her face and he knew that this was something that she really wanted, and if he didn't go along with it, he would pay for it later.

"Sure," he conceeded, and let her drag him inside. The arrangement that he had with Kaelie was simple, really. They had known each other since they were in school, and after she had gone away for a few months to travel with one of her friends, she had come back to live with her parents. It wasn't like they were friends, but they definitely had some benefits going on. Sometimes it verged on a relationship, they would go out for dinner, go to social events together or to the movies. Jace wasn't sure if there would ever be anything more between them because he was satisfied with how they were now, and he honestly couldn't imagine anything worse than properly dating a girl like Kaelie.

"Hi, Helen," he greeted the girl behind the counter as they walked in. Helen gave him a wide smile, which faltered when she saw Kaelie at his side. It was no secret that Kaelie and Helen didn't get on. Helen had come out as lesbian when she was at school, before Aline had been in the picture, and Kaelie, as the standard popular, mean girl, had made her life hard. "I'm just going to wait over there," he told Kaelie, pointing over to a plush couch that was along the back wall, tucked down the short hall where the two changing rooms were.

"Sure thing," Kaelie reached up to press a lingering kiss to his mouth before flouncing over to the racks in front of the floor to ceiling windows. Jace sat down on the couch, wrinkling up his nose at the strong perfume that hung in the air of the store. This was clearly a place that usually only had females as customers, because no man would willingly subject himself to a place that smelt this strong. He distracted himself for a couple of minutes by tapping away on his phone, looking at his Facebook and replying to a text from Alec, before he heard a bump in one of the changing rooms. He narrowed his eyes as he realized there was someone in the one directly in front of him. There were no doors to block off the customers from the view of everyone else, just thin, silky curtains, and Jace was surprised he hadn't noticed the persons sillouhette first. There were gaps on either side of the curtain, and he felt the breath leave his chest the instant his eyes landed on the mirror on the wall in the changing room.

It was the fiesty red head.

Clary.

Shit.

Jace's mouth felt dry as he watched her examine herself in the reflection. There was only the slightest gap, but it was enough for him to be able to see most of her reflection, and when she moved, he caught a glimpse of her actual body, rather than the image in the mirror, and his hand tightened around his phone as he saw the curve of her ass. It was round, and firm, and begging to be squeezed and slapped. She must have been wearing a thong, because her ass looked completely bare.

And then she took off the corset she was wearing, dropping it to the ground—he heard the slight crush of fabric—and straightened back up, fiddling with something in front of her.

But her torso was completely naked.

And he could see her perfect, full breasts and rosy nipples.

He tried to swallow and drag his eyes away, but he couldn't. He was subconciously leaning forward, trying to see more than just the tiny gap between the curtain and the wall, watching as she put the corset on, opening her arms and revealing more of herself—of silky looking skin—so that she could do up the little eyelets.

Jace was one hundred percent certain he was never, ever going to see anything sexier than the way she was looking right now. There was no denying how hard he was right now, almost throbbing in his jeans, within only seconds of being aroused.

Her hair was falling around her face, and she was scrutinizing her expression with this cute little pout and half frown, and _fuck_ , he could not get over how good she looked. She wasn't waif-like, like Kaelie, she actually had proper curves, and his skin was itching to touch her. He had never been this attracted to someone in his entire fucking life and he couldn't figure out why it had to be her.

The stupid girl who was going to drive when she clearly had been drinking strong liquor.

Or who had then made a clumsy attempt to ask him out on a date.

But she was also the girl that had made him hard when he was kissing Kaelie, just looking up at her angry, narrowed green eyes. And the girl that had turned him on for a second time by such an everyday activity like working out at the gym. It may have been because it looked as though she could take him on in a fist fight that spoke to something primal inside him.

"Baby?" Jace snapped his eyes up to where Kaelie was standing in front of him, holding a couple of skimpy looking outfits in her hand. "I'm going to grab these. Wanna head back to my place? Try them on? She grinned at him, clearly thinking the flushed look on his face was for her. Jace wasn't going to tell her differently.

But he wasn't going to be thinking about her when they got back to her place and he was fucking her into the mattress.

He was going to be thinking about Clary.

 _So let me know what you guys think?_

 _I just want to spazz out about a couple of things. One, over the past month or so I've finally started binging on_ Teen Wolf. _I brought every season I could off eBay and watched at every free moment I could. I'm completely fucking in love Dylan O'Brien and Tyler Hoechlin. God, they're absolute baaaabes. And the kid who played Isaac. I can't get over his face. He so...Like, sweet looking, but completely sexy at the same time. Gosh._

 _And the other thing is the show_ Shadowhunters. _I was really let down when it first started, the first couple of episodes were, well, absolutely terrible. To be honest. But it's gradually gotten better, and I actually quite like the last two episodes. And Matthew Daddario as Alec? Oh. My God. OhmyGOD! He's just...*sighs dreamily*_

 _Leave a review, and I'll send you out a preview xx_


	9. Chapter 9

_Back with the new chapter, pretty peeps :) And yes, as someone guessed, the café that they're going to,_ Karen's _, is based on the café from_ One Tree Hill _. The town I actually have in my head while writing this is One Tree Hill, so if you guys want a picture of the place, then that's it! Oh, and I've also posted that alphabet songfic story has been posted, so go and check that out. It's called_ Pressing Play.

"Where are you off to, babes?" Jocelyn asked as she stopped by Clary's bedroom and looked inside.

"I've got a date," Clary replied with a smirk.

"Oh really?" Jocelyn grinned. "So should I be expecting you home tonight, or you planning on being out until morning?" Clary pursed her lips, not replying straight away as she applied her lipstick and then rubbed them together to even the spread before turning around to look at her mother.

"I'll be home tonight," she said. She grinned and spun around on the ball of her heel. "How do I look?" She was wearing the black, strapless dress that she had planned on yesterday. Her hair was in a swooping ponytail at the top of her head, a couple of braids twisted into her hair as well, and her eyes weren't as dark as they usually were. Her lips were in a brighter red than usual, and she always felt a whole lot more confident when she knew that under her clothes she was wearing sexy lingerie.

"You look gorgeous, as usual," Jocelyn smiled, coming into the room, and fluffing up her hair and then tapping her daughter on the nose lightly. "Let me know if you need me to come and pick you up."

"I know," she smiled. "But I'm not planning on drinking. I'm meeting him there, and I plan on driving back."

"But if you _do_ end up drinking—"

"Okay, okay, I'll call you," Clary sung out with a playful roll of her eyes.

"Thank you," Jocelyn said. "It's not like New York here. You know, where there's a cab around every corner."

"I know," Clary nodded. "Alright, I'm off." Shadow and Hunter were already tangling themselves around her ankles, meowing as they looked up at her. Usually, Clary would lean down and given them a pat or a cuddle, but she had just spent the last twenty minutes getting cat hair off her outfit, and she wasn't about to start that party all over again. So instead, she blew a kiss at them and then walked down the hallway in her five inch heels. She had mastered the art long ago of driving in heels; something that a lot of men found extremely attractive. Especially when the car she had been driving was driving her Challenger.

Shit, she missed that car.

It had been a while since she had been out on a date. It had been almost five months since they had been whisked away from their home by the Suits, but even the months before then, she hadn't been seeing anyone. At least not seeing anyone that was worth going on a date with. There was a guy that she slept with a couple of times, when she was feeling frisky, but there hadn't been anyone serious for probably a good six months.

The idea of having an actual boyfriend didn't seem all that great when almost every man she brought home had an agenda; mainly to do with her father.

Most people in New York knew who she was, it might actually be fun to start completely fresh with Sebastian, who just thought she was another piece of ass.

 _Karen's_ was already about half full when she got there. She was about twenty minutes late—on purpose—and was pleased to see Sebastian already seated. He didn't look upset about her tardiness, and waved her over. Clary walked over, and pulled out the chair opposite him. He got out of his seat and reached over to give her a kiss, and she purposefully turned her head to the side so that his lips landed on her cheek rather than her mouth, like he had intended. They sat down and Clary looked at the little menu in the middle of the table.

"You looking stunning," he told her, and she glanced up at him through her thick eyelashes, and noted that he looked sincere.

"You look good too," she replied with a half smile before dropping her eyes back to the menu.

The night went surprisingly well. There was a little footsie playing going on under the table, Sebastian's legs always against hers, and somewhere in the middle of dessert, Clary took off one of her heels and lifted her leg, rubbing her foot along his thigh before resting it between his legs, on his seat. Her toes were rubbing against the centre of his legs, and from the way he was shifting in his seat, and he kept biting down on his lower lip, she knew that he was aroused. Clary grinned as she finished off her ice cream and then leaned forward in her seat.

"You gonna take me somewhere?" She asked him pointedly, her voice quiet. Sebastian's eyes widened and then he nodded. They got up and walked up to the main counter, paying for their meal and then walking outside. "I brought my car," she began.

"No, it's okay," Sebastian said as he linked her arm through his. "I know a place not too far. You like cars, right?" It had come up in conversation that she had once owned a Challenger, and he had nodded appreciatively, and she was glad that he knew what she was talking. She wasn't a car fanatic, but she knew enough, and she really didn't like it when the guys she was with knew even less. "Well, my dad runs the car yard in town."

" _Enterprise Motors_?" Clary's upper lip curled slightly and her step faltered. "You're taking me to a car yard? That's classy."

"Oh, come on, now," Sebastian shot her a teasing look out of the corner of his eye, still walking forward and forcing her to do so next to him. "Don't get coy." Clary knew what he was insinuating and shrugged. It wasn't as though she hadn't exactly been forth coming with the reasons behind why she was going out with them; it's not like they were playing any games. They both knew where they wanted this evening to go. So she let him lead her down the street, until they reached a car yard.

To be fair, the cars were all very nice and expensive looking, and when he lead her into the building and tapped in the security code, she thought that maybe this wouldn't be the worse idea ever. Sebastian flicked on a set of lights, which only ran along the front of the shop and left almost everything else in shadows.

"So you work here?" Clary asked as she walked slowly through the show room, running her fingers along the smooth hoods of a couple of cars, making sure to arch her back a little so that her ass was curving outwards, back towards Sebastian. He followed after her, a little bit slower, and then stopped when she reached the front desk, turning around and bracing her elbows backwards against the counter.

"Sometimes," Sebastian shrugged. "My dad runs the place, and I guess me and my step-brother are set to take over the place once he retires."

"Ah, so you have a brother? So do I," Clary told him, looking him up and down.

" _Step_ -brother," he re-iterated, looking a little tense as he did so. Clary guessed that there was some kind of back story there, but she really didn't care. Sebastian closed the distance between them and put his hands on either side of the counter, blocking her in. Clary jutted her chin forward so that she could meet his eyes, her green eyes glowing as she waited for him to take the first move.

It didn't take him long.

He tightened his fingers on her hips and crushed her lips with his. Clary let him control the kiss, his tongue forcing it's way into her mouth and pulling her hard against him. His hands moved to push her cropped jacket off her shoulders and it fell to the ground. He ran his fingernails over her shoulders and her neck, before going down to the hem of her extremely short skirt and pulling it up, so that it was bunched around her hips. He rubbed at the apex of her legs roughly until he felt wetness soak through the material of her underwear.

"Come on," he grunted at her, pulling away and grabbing her wrist, dragging her away from the counter and toward a door, marked _Employees Only_. Clary blinked, her eyes a little hazy and her legs feeling a bit weak as she stumbled after him. They walked down a short, dark hallway until they reached a room and he pushed her inside, not bothering with flicking the switch, so the only light came from the screen saver on the desk top computer.

That's when the real fun started.

It all became a rush to see who could get the others clothes off fastest. Clary would have been happy with just stripping out of her thong and getting his cock inside her. She didn't realize just how long it had been until his fingers had been rubbing her, and now she just wanted to get off. But then when he ripped off her corset and dropped it to the ground, and his fingers grasped her nipples, she let out a long, guttural moan, appreciating that there was going to be a little foreplay.

"Fuck, you're hot," Sebastian muttered, his hands going to her hair and knotting itself there, pushing her head down so that she was forced to her knees in front of him. Clary was okay with that, she liked giving head. She was good at it, and guys were always a whole lot more receptive afterwards. Plus, their reactions always made her wetter. She sucked at him, smoothing her tongue down the side of his cock and letting the head hit the back of her throat, listening to the groan he let out. He started to pull at her hair, moving her head back and forth quicker and quicker until she let her teeth scrape the underside of her cock and he grunted and jerked her away. "Fucking hell, Clary—"

"Have you got something?" She asked breathlessly as he pushed her backwards against the desk.

"Uh, yeah," Sebastian mumbled as he picked up his jeans and pulled out a little foil packet. He ripped it open with his teeth and then motioned for her to turn around. Clary bent herself over the desk, and let out a little whine as he kicked her feet apart and one hand planted itself on her back, pushing her further forward. He ran a finger down her spine, tracing the tattoo's on her back. "These are hot," he told her.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Clary muttered. "Get back to it." She heard him let out a short laugh before his fingers continued their descent. He dipped his fingers between her ass cheeks, pressing briefly against her hole before sliding down and entering into her cunt. He fucked her with his fingers until her whole body tightened and then relaxed as she orgasmed. As her vision was still blotted with dark spots, he pulled on the condom and then pushed inside her.

 _No hate! You all know that Clace is end game, so I'm writing this with a plot in mind, don't worry!_

 _Sooooo, whaaaat did ya'll think?_

 _Oh yeah, and I totally solved the big siblings dilemma in the show! A simple DNA test, bitches. Takes two seconds, and then next episode, we're back on track again._

 _Leave a review, and let me know what you think, and I'll send you a preview of the next chapter :) xx_


	10. Chapter 10

_So. To begin with;_ _I'm still motherfucking dead over the Malec kiss._

 _That was a bloody good kiss._

 _No simple peck._

 _I was very, very impressed._

 _And I've watched that scene probably about...Well, two or three hundred times..._

Jace shoved his hands into his pockets as he got out of his car. It was a cold morning, and he walked quickly toward the side door leading into the show room. He was running a bit later than usual, it was almost eight, so the car yard was going to be open in just a few minutes. He walked inside and smiled over at the manager, who had been with them for quite a few years now, and then headed toward the door marked Employees Only. He stopped first at his office, logging into his computer, and then headed toward his fathers office to turn on the coffee machine. He had been trying to get Stephen Herondale to move the fancy coffee machine into the break room, but he was a stubborn one.

"Oh, shit," he muttered as he saw the office. He pulled out his phone, scrolled through his contacts before he stabbed at the one he was looking for.

 _What the fuck did you do in dad's office?_

He growled under his breath as he shoved his phone back into his pocket and looked around the office. There were papers on the floor and the keyboard and mouse that were usually so perfectly positioned in front of the desktop, were both pushed to the side and the mouse was threatening to hang precariously over the edge. His phone pinged in response and he jerked it back out. But it wasn't the reply he had expected, it was Kaelie, letting him know that she was stopping by with coffee and breakfast. There was no point in telling her not to come over, so he just rolled his eyes and went back to cleaning up.

There was a rap at the door and Jace looked over, his eyes narrowing as he saw his step-brother standing there, looking very happy with himself.

"I'm guessing that you wanted dad to see all of this, and have him clean it up," Jace grunted as he glared over at Sebastian.

"Now why would I do that?" Sebastian sung out.

"Because you're a vindictive asshole," Jace snapped as he noticed something lacy on the ground and snatched it up, hanging it from one of his finger and waving it in front of Sebastian's face. "And you've got enough daddy issues that could fill a novel." Sebastian didn't look ruffled, just grinned and reached out to grab the corset from him. He turned it around, so that Jace could see the front and he narrowed his eyes slightly.

He knew exactly when he had seen that corset before.

Two days ago.

On Clary.

In the reflection of the dressing room mirror at _Laced Up_.

"So how's life, bro?" Sebastian's words were dripping with sarcasm. "Still kissing fathers ass?"

"Oh, fuck off, Sebastian," Jace growled, suddenly feeling a whole lot more pissed off that he was a few minutes ago. "It's not called being a suck up. It's being an adult. One of us needs to be." It shouldn't have surprised him that Sebastian and Clary found each other, they sort of made sense. That didn't mean he had to like it—although he couldn't really figure out _why_ it bothered him so much.

He had no claim on her—he had barely spoken to the girl, and even when they had, she had made his body bristle in what he had thought was annoyance.

Jace purposefully slammed his door a little harder than needed when he stormed into his office, but he could still hear Sebastian chuckling out in the hall.

* * *

Jocelyn sighed as she finished filing the rest of her paperwork. Even though she didn't say it to Clary, she knew exactly how her daughter was feeling, trapped in this small town and these mindless jobs. When she was younger, before she had met her husband, maybe this was the kind of life that would have made her happy, but it wasn't what she was used to now. And even though she wanted something safer for herself and her daughter, this wasn't exactly what she had had in mind; working for an accounting firm.

"Afternoon, Jocelyn," came the low voice of Gregory Jensen, her boss. She looked over her shoulder and gave him a quick smile as he stopped beside her desk. She pushed the filing cabinet closed and then turned around to face him. "Long day?" He asked her, nodding at the tall pile of folders still on her desk.

"I don't understand the need for so many hard copies," she stated with a shake of her head. "Everything is electronic these days."

"Some of our older clients don't trust the computer systems," Gregory shrugged sympathetically. "It is frustrating, though. I get that."

"Yes, well," she looked down at the time in the corner of her computer and gave him another quick smile. "I'm about to head off for the day, so I'll get this all started on first thing in the morning."

"Of course," he nodded. "Actually, the reason that I came over was because I'm leaving as well, and I was wondering if perhaps you wanted to get dinner with me." Jocelyn looked at him, considering his offer for a split second before giving him a smile to soften the blow of rejection she was about to deliver.

"Sorry, Mr Jensen," she began. "I need to get home. My daughter works nights quite often, so the nights that she is at home, I like to eat dinner with her." Gregory nodded.

"I understand," he didn't look put out. "But the offer stands. And it's Greg, please."

"Greg," Jocelyn side-stepped around him and nodded. "Goodnight." She walked briskly toward the front door, ignoring the overly interested look of one of the other secreteries. It was surprising that the person she got on best with at work was Maia Roberts, the youngest in the office. It might have been because the girl reminded her of her daughter, but it was also because she was nowhere near as gossipy as the other woman she worked with. She had never understood full grown woman acting as though they were back in high school, and Maia was refreshingly blunt when it came to them, which was exactly what Jocelyn wanted and looked for when searching out a kindred spirit.

Jocelyn got into her old Nissan Coupe and threw her bag onto the passenger seat and turned on her car. The engine turned over but there was a bit of a sputter as it did so. Jocelyn sighed but pressed her foot down on the accelerator, smiling with relief as the engine revved. When they had been re-housed, they were only given the option for one car. Jocelyn really didn't care all that much about cars, but she knew that Clary was adjusting to a lot, and leaving behind the Challenger had been a sting for her. So Jocelyn had let Clary pick out which car they were going to get, and then she had saved up for an old model that one of their new neighbours were selling.

Turns out that might not have been such a good option.

"Oh, fuck," Jocelyn growled. She had only driven one block, so was still a good twenty minutes away from home, and the engine was making another funny hiccup noise before it cut out completely. "Fuck," she slapped her hand down on the steering wheel as she directed the car toward the side of the road. She shifted the car into nuetral and tried to start the engine again but there was absolutely no response. Jocelyn clenched her teeth together and leaned back against the headrest.

This day just kept on getting better.

There was a tap on her window, surprising her almost out of her skin, and she snapped her head to the side. There was a young man standing there and she rolled down her window.

"Yes?" She asked, her voice coming out a little harsher than she meant it to be.

"It looks like maybe you could use a ride?" The man asked, giving her a half smile. Jocelyn was surprised by the offer and clearly that showed on her face. His smile widened, and he took a half step back, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket and rustling around in it. "I'm not a serial killer or anything, I promise," he gave a short laugh. "I work with a car dealership in town—here's my card." He found what he was looking for and handed it over to her. Jocelyn took it.

Jace Herondale.

"I can't exactly leave my car here," Jocelyn said.

"That's no problem, I can get that taken care of," Jace told her. "I'll call one of the boys to get it towed to your place."

"Oh..." Jocelyn was taken aback and faltered before smiling. "Wow. That would be great."

"No problem," Jace smiled. "Just move what you need to over to my car and I'll give them a call." Jocelyn nodded and gathered up her bag from the passenger seat, quickly winding up her windows before getting out and walking over to the Corvette and getting in. The car was immaculate, and smelt like an expensive mens cologne. Jace finished up his phone call and then came over to the car, getting in and flashing her another smile. "So what's your address?" She gave it to him and he nodded, pulling away from the side of the road and accelerating. There was something quiet playing on the radio, and it didn't sound like anything young and angry that Clary listened to, so she was happy about that.

"Thank you again—for the ride home," Jocelyn mentioned again as they turned down her street.

"It's absolutely fine—really," Jace assured her as he pulled up outside her house. He turned off the engine and Jocelyn opened her door. "Um, actually...Do you think I could use your toilet?"

"Yeah, sure, sure," Jocelyn grinned and lead the way toward the house. Clary's car was parked in the driveway, but the house was silent as she kicked off her shoes. That was unusual for her, since Clary loved noise. It used to put her to sleep when she was a little kid to leave the tiny top window of her room open so that she could hear the traffic and chatter from the streets below. "It's just down the hall."

"Thank you," Jace toed off his own shoes and began walking down the hallway. Jocelyn disappeared into the kitchen and Jace looked over his shoulder before slowing his pace and studying his surroundings.

This had been an interesting turn of events.

He had had no idea who Jocelyn was when he had pulled over to the side of the road to offer her a ride home, but as soon as she had given him her address, he felt his whole body tense up. And maybe it wasn't smart, but when he had seen Clary's car in the driveway, he knew that he had to see her. He was almost at the end of the hallway and he had already past the bathroom but then he caught a glimpse of her.

Her bedroom door was wide open and she was fast asleep on her bed, and Jace swallowed hard as he looked in at her. She was wearing leggings and an oversized shirt, all of her clothes splattered in coloured paint. He took a step closer to the threshold of the door and could see a little around the corner, to where there was an easel set up, a large canvas propped upon it that was splashed in colour—the same colours that were staining Clary's clothes.

He didn't know she was a painter.

Obviously.

Because he knew nothing about her—he didn't even know her last name.

But he did know that there was some ridiculous pull that made him want to know those things about her, and a lot more.

She looked gorgeous; fast asleep, her face completely relaxed, one arm splayed above her head and her lips parted.

Jace unconciously stepped forward and was greeted by an angry growl. He frowned and looked down, a long, black cat standing there with a furious look in it's eyes.

"Jace!" Came a call, snapping him out of his reverie. "Did you find the bathroom?"

 _What do you all think? You know how happy reviews make me, and I'll send you a preview of the next chapter :)_

 _Soooo...I'm watching_ Sound of Music _while I edit. Shit man, this movie never gets old. I'm seriously in love with every single one of them, and Julie Andrews in bloody flawless._

 _Now, there's some music that I've been completely in love with lately and I wanted to tell you, and if you guys can tell me your favourites as well, I'm always down for more music. So there's_ Roman Holiday _by Halsey, or just anything by her to be honest. And then_ Soldier _by Fleurie and_ Storm _by Ruelle._


	11. Chapter 11

_Hey, guys :) Next chapter. A question I got asked that I actually meant to address a while earlier, is I was asked who I imagine as the characters when I'm writing. Well, to me, Lily and Jamie will always be Clary and Jace. I think they did a spectacular job. And to be totally honest, the TV actors really frustrate me. Not saying they're not good actors or anything, I'm sure they're just doing what the directors tell them to, but they drive me kind of nuts. I find Clary super whiny and Jace unbearably broody. For pretty much everyone else as well, I imagine the movie actors. The only ones I see from the TV show (other than people who obviously weren't featured in the movie) is Matthew Daddario as Alec and Emeraude Toubia as Isabelle._

"What time are you working until tonight?" Jocelyn asked as the two woman moved around each other to make their breakfast.

"Six," Clary replied as she ripped off the corner of her toast and washed it down with a sip of coffee. "But then I think I'm gonna go to the bar afterwards."

"Okay, well, I'll leave you dinner in the microwave," Jocelyn told her as she sat down at the kitchen table. Clary finished off her coffee before leaning down to pull over the heels she wore to work and strapping them on. "I don't know why you insist on wearing those every day," Jocelyn shook her head. "You're going to screw up your ankles and calves." Clary rolled her eyes and grin.

"Yeah, but how good does my ass look in them?" Clary teased back, doing a half turn and wiggling her ass a little. Hunter had been perched on the table by her elbow, but was suddenly jumping off the table and skidding across the wooden floors in a rush to get to the front door. Clary frowned as she got up, walking into the lounge and then sighed when she saw who it was. "Mum!" She called over her shoulder. "Did you know the Suits were coming by?!"

"Oh, really?" Jocelyn growled under her breath as she followed Clary into the lounge. "Don't they get that we have work?" There was a knock at the door and Jocelyn heaved out a sigh before she reached the front door and swung it open. "Hi," she raised her eyebrows at Luke and Hodge. "Long drive for this time of morning."

"What do you want?" Clary asked bluntly, appearing behind her mother and crossing her arms over her chest. Luke, as usual, didn't look at all put out by her attitude, but Hodge just furrowed his eyebrows moreso.

"Do you mind if we step inside for a few minutes?" Luke asked, his voice still formally polite. Jocelyn didn't look happy about it, but stepped aside to let the pair of them in. Clary remained standing by the front door, arms still over her chest as the two men sat down on the couch and directed their gazes toward Jocelyn. "We just wanted to talk about a few things—the timeline, really."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Clary interjected, drawing their stares for a split second before Hodge grumbled under his breath.

"We're going to need to push things out by a little bit," he said.

"What do you mean?" Jocelyn asked, narrowing her eyes. "Why?"

"We want to make sure that you only need to testify once and then that's it," Luke told her, his voice deep and sincere. "You know that once we get you back to New York and on the witness stand, you and your daughter will be back out in the open and we don't want that if it's going to drag out. So we want to make sure that we have everything sorted once you go back—"

"Are you saying that you can't protect us?" Jocelyn's voice was sharp, and she instinctively took a step toward Clary. "Because that was something that you agreed to when we came to you and said we could testify—"

"I know, Jocelyn, and we can protect you—we _are_ protecting you," Luke said firmly. "You two are our top priority—"

"Only because of what we can give you," Clary said bitterly. Luke and Hodge looked back at her and she met their gazes steadily.

"But we're safe... _Here_ , right?" Jocelyn clarified.

"Yes," Luke nodded his head firmly. "Of course you are. Only myself, Hodge and our boss know where you are—and all of us can be trusted." Jocelyn nodded her head slowly. "Look, like I said, we just wanted to let you know that the timeline has been pushed out a little further. But we will keep you up to date with all news and time frames as soon as we get them, you know that." Neither woman looked very happy but they both nodded. "Have a good day, ladies," he flashed a smile before they both got up. Hodge was the first toward the door, and Clary was close behind him, heading toward her door. Just before Luke walked out the door, Jocelyn grabbed his arm and pulled him backwards.

"What's going on, Luke?" She asked, her voice hushed.

"I don't know what you mean, Jocelyn," Luke said, his voice guarded.

"Yes, you do," Jocelyn pushed him, her eyes narrow and her voice vice-like. Luke sighed and rubbed a hand over his face, pinching at the bridge of his nose before glancing out the door to make sure both Hodge and Clary were out of earshot. "I know what this means, Luke, you forget that I've been married to that man for so long that I know the ins and outs of all of this. Something has happened, and that's why the timeline has moved."

"It's nothing that we can't handle," Luke assured her.

"Do you promise me that?" Jocelyn asked, giving him a look that Clary always described as her 'mum' look.

"Jocie," Luke breathed, reaching out to take her hands and give them a squeeze, his eyes boring deep into her own. "Jocie—I promise that I'm not going to let anything happen to you or to your daughter. You have my word on that." Jocelyn took in a deep breath, feeling her stomach flutter slightly at the earnest look.

"What about my son, Luke?" She asked, her resolved breaking slightly as she took in a breath. "Is my son okay?"

"He's fine, Jocelyn," Luke said comfortingly, and Clary looked over her shoulder to the see the exchange between the two. "It's nothing to do with him. We just want to make sure everything is set, that we have everything in order before the trial, so that there's no need for you two to go through this ever again. Okay?"

* * *

After Jocelyn left for work, she had text Clary to make sure that she was keeping her word, not getting in contact with anyone back home and especially not her brother. Clary had frowned as she had gotten ready for her shift, sending off a reply to say that she wasn't stupid; she hadn't contacted anyone, just like she had been told. Jocelyn had answered by saying that was good, and that she loved her.

"Are you okay?" Aline asked as Clary stared down at the bench, wiping the same spot over and over again with a wet rag. Clary looked over at her friend and nodded. "You sure? You seem a little zoned out."

"I'm okay," Clary told her, flashing a quick smile. "Just can't wait for shift to be over." Her head was still back at her house this morning, thinking about the conversation that they had had with the Suits.

"Shit," Aline laughed. "That's not good—it's only Tuesday!" Clary forced herself to laugh and then turned back to wiping down the bench top. Thankfully, the day went by quickly, customers kept coming in and filling the gaps, and then six o'clock rolled around. Clary thought about going home, but she didn't want to. Besides, she had already told Jocelyn that she was going to the bar. Admittedly, Jocelyn probably thought she was going to the bar to be with friends, but what she didn't know couldn't hurt her.

Clary went over to the bar and took a seat, the usual one, at the end of the bar, leaning against the wall and swinging her legs on the bar stool as she sipped from her tumbler. It was almost an hour later that Sebastian came in. He saw her straight away, and sent her that smirk of his, but he didn't come over, walking over the pool table with three of his friends. They ordered a round of drinks, and the pretty waitress came out with the beers, giving them all smiles and a bat of her eyelashes.

Jocelyn text her a couple of times, asking her when she was coming home, but Clary didn't reply.

She probably wanted to talk about the visit from the Suits this morning.

But Clary didn't want to think about it.

Because sometimes she didn't think what she and her mother were doing was the right thing.

She didn't doubt that her father was a bad person, but the pair of them turning on him? She didn't know if that was the best thing. By doing this they were throwing away their whole lives and half of their family—her father and her brother.

That was why she needed to drink.

She needed to drink and she needed to forget why she was here.

There was a flat screen plasma behind the bar and Clary broke her attention between the TV and the pool table, where Sebastian and his boys were playing. Every now and then, Sebastian would look over at her, and give her a smile, before going back to his game. The longer Clary stared at him, the more Clary regretted going out with him.

Which was ridiculous, because everything she had done was fine. She was single, he was single—they fucked. That's what happened.

But going around and screwing assholes who really didn't care about her was what she was doing back in New York. There was nothing wrong with doing it, but when they were driving away from the city, she told herself that that part of her life was over. Sure, she mainly meant the whole daughter of a mob boss thing, but the loose lifestyle that she had lead was all part of that mob boss lifestyle.

She needed to get home, talk to her mum, find out what it is that she was worried about.

"How much to cover the bill?" Clary asked, getting off her booth and wobbling slightly as her heeled feet hit the ground.

"Thirty-five, love," the bartender smiled and she fumbled around in her bag to find her wallet and pulled out her debit card, sliding it across the counter top. Her card was swiped and she paid the bill, and then began making her way toward the door. It was almost eight-thirty now, and the bar was pretty full, dark shadows swooping around the room from the dim lights and loud music pounding from the speakers in each of the corners. She was heading down the hallway toward the front when an arm grasped her elbow and pulled her to the side.

"What?" Clary squeaked, looking up and raising her eyebrows at the man.

Sebastian.

"I've been looking at you all night," Sebastian murmured, pushing her against the wall. They were still in view of everyone in the bar, but they were in the shadows. "God, you're fucking gorgeous," he growled, kissing down her throat and biting lightly at her skin. Clary swallowed hard, her hands resting against his firm chest, wondering what she was doing here.

Her body felt detached from the touches and kisses, and not in the way where she was still enjoying it, like she was high or drunk. She just really didn't want to be there.

She opened her mouth to say something when suddenly she was being pulled away, _again_ , and she narrowed her eyes.

"Jace?" She asked in surprise.

"What the hell are you doing?" Sebastian growled, looking a lot more pissed off than he had a few seconds ago.

"Your friend and I need to talk," Jace spat out, kicking open a maintenance door and pulling Clary outside. She finally snapped out of her surprise and jerked away from Jace, her green eyes spitting at him and her red hair flew around her face.

"Don't fucking manhandle me," she hissed at him. "Now; what the fuck do you want?!"

 _Now! My music obsessions since my last update! Actually, heaps of old songs have resurfaced on my iTunes. There's_ Thinking It Over _by Dana Glover, seriously this song makes my heart ache like every time I hear it. I think I obsessively listened to it when I was a teenager when I went through a break up, melodramatic child that I was. Then there's_ Pony _by Ginuwine. LOL. Don't know what's got me so into that one all of a sudden. And the third one is_ Bring Me Back To Life _by Extreme Music. Seriously, the_ Shadowhunters _show has a pretty great soundtrack, I think I've fallen in love with every song I've discovered through there!_

 _Oh gosh,_ aaaaaaaand _there's this cover of a Jesse McCartney song,_ Beautiful Soul, _by SoMo. I watched a Stydia fan video to the song, and I'm now just completely in love._

 _Oooooh, and in the post the other day, I got my Stilinski 24 hoodie. Can you tell I'm obsessed with_ Teen Wolf _just a little bit? Yes? No? Maybe? LOL._

 _As usual, please feed my obsession with songs and reviews :) It'd make me very happy, and I'll send you a preview xxx_


	12. Chapter 12

_Couple of things have happened since my last update. First thing is sad, one of my kitties died :( Not too sure how, appears as though he ate something poisonous in our neighbours yard. Me and my hubby and my second kitty are very upset. Second thing is happier, thank God; it's my birthday today! Yes, Friday the 13th. LOL. I'm getting old._

 _Also as a side note, I've posted a couple of pilot chapters for a few Clace stories that I'll be starting. They don't have a set updating schedule yet, but they will be expanded on and turned into full multi-chapter stories, so go check them out and let me know what you think :)_

Jace looked as though he was at a loss for words. Clary was staring at him expectantly—furiously—waiting for him to tell her whatever it was that he wanted. The thing was, he really didn't have anything to say to her. She was this sparking little firecracker, her eyes flashing and the corners of her mouth turned down in the corners, looking as though she was ready to punch him in the nose if he didn't say something soon.

But, once again; _he had nothing_.

"Shit, man," Clary began, a smirk starting to spread over her pretty pink mouth as she tilted her head to the side and stared up at him. "Did you drag me out here because of some weird kind of jealousy thing that you have with your _brother_?" Jace's eyes widened as he realized that she knew the relationship between him and Sebastian and Clary let out a short laugh, which didn't sound at all authentic. "Oh, come on. This town is barely big enough to turn around in. All people do around here is gossip."

"I'm not jealous of my _step_ -brother," Jace spat at her, narrowing his eyes as he glared down.

"Ooh, I love the way you have to correct me there," Clary scrunched up her nose, waving a finger tauntingly in front of his face. "You have such a problem with the idea of him being called your _brother_."

"I'm not jealous of him!" Jace repeated, his voice louder this time. Clary pursed her lips together pointedly but her eyes were still sparkling with fire. The music from inside the bar was loud, so loud they could hear it clearly from where they were in the back alley, and there were windows open all along the top of the building so that they could hear the laughing and talking from inside. It was dark, almost nine, and there was a bite in the wind and the smell of rain in the air. Jace was still staring down at Clary and he almost groaned out loud as he realized that he had absolutely no plan here. Usually, he was the first one with a plan, but he had just seen Sebastian pawing at Clary and all he could think about was getting her away from him. "He's a fucking asshole."

"And what the fuck do you care?" Clary mocked him. "Last time I checked, I was just some problem drunk that you wanted absolutely nothing to do with."

"You should stay away from him," Jace continued, acting as though she had never spoken. "He hurts girls and he doesn't give a shit."

"Aw, really?" Clary pouted up at him but it was clear that she didn't care about what he was saying. "Does he hurt their feelings? Does he not ring them after he sleeps with them?" She rolled her eyes and tipped her head back against the door. "Because I don't fucking care about that shit. And you sure as hell shouldn't care about that shit when it has _nothing to do with you_."

"Yeah, you're completely right," Jace finally shot back at her. "If you want to be fucked over by him, that's totally your choice."

"I'm so glad we agree on something!" Clary sung out, her voice still taunting and puckering her lips at him mockingly. "Or—oh, I have another theory!" She giggled and pushed herself off the wall so that she was only a few inches away from him. Out of stubbornness and sheer stupidity, Jace refused to step back, so Clary's breasts were pressing against his chest and she had her head tilted back so that she was looking straight at him. "Maybe it's not really your _brother,_ " she called him his brother again, liking the way Jace's eyes just burned a little hotter. "Maybe it's me," she tilted her head to the side, raising herself up on her toes so that her lips were only a breath away from his mouth. "Maybe you want a kiss." Jace stared down at her, his chest tight as his eyes lowered down to look at her mouth before he narrowed his eyes and took a step back from her.

"And you think it's hard to get a kiss from a girl like you?" He snorted derisively. "Shit, from what I can tell, you go around opening your legs to everyone. It's not hard to get a kiss—wouldn't be hard to get anything." Clary's eyes sparked and the smirk dropped off her face, just as the first few drops of rain began to fall, splashing down on the concrete ground around them.

"Don't you dare talk to me like that," her tone was harsh and Jace was surprised by the way her green eyes narrowed furiously. He must have really hit a nerve there. "You can't go running your mouth about shit like that when that girl I saw you with the other night isn't your girlfriend. Just some whore that you're banging when you feel like it."

"Oh, so you're checking up on me now?" Jace rolled his eyes. "And you say that _I'm_ jealous?!"

"Well you're the one pulling me out of the club when I clearly had other things that I wanted to be doing! What else am I supposed to think?!" Clary snapped at him. The rain was starting to fall more steadily, splashing down against Clary's porcelain cheeks and darkening the colour of Jace's golden hair. "Shit, man—what is it with you?!" She didn't look drunk or teasing anymore, just plain pissed off.

And _damn_ if that wasn't a turn on.

"I mean, you helped me out the first night we met; great. I thought you were some weirdo good Samaritan. But then you've acted as though I've done something to personally offend you every other time since. Which I can absolutely assure you, I _haven't done_ , because we've never even held a proper fucking conversation!" She squinted up at him and Jace swallowed hard, surprised that she had seen him. "So what's this all about, huh, Jace? What the fuck is up your ass?"

Jace had no answer.

None at all.

And she was glaring up at him, blatantly _not_ about to let him walk away from this.

She was all fire and spark, her thick red locks beginning to curl from the rain that was pattering down harder and harder. They were slightly sheltered by the overhang of the roof, but they were still getting wet, especially Jace. The water was soaking through the back of his shirt, and he really should be shivering at the cold as it seeped into his bones, but he didn't feel cold.

And he knew that it had everything to do with Clary.

"Oi!" Clary was getting in his face, snapping her fingers in front of him and raising his voice. "I said; _what the fuck is up your_ —" he cut her off there.

With his mouth.

He slammed her backwards against the wooden door that lead back into the bar, his hips pinning her against the wall as his hands went to her face. There was a split second of resistance, but then her mouth was opening and he could feel the warmth of her against his own tongue. The kiss wasn't sweet and it wasn't romantic, it was hard and it was rough and she bit down on his tongue at least twice as it tasted the inside of her mouth. He returned just as good as she gave, his teeth capturing her lower lip and clamping down so hard that he tasted the bitter taste of blood inside his mouth.

That didn't deter her though, as her hands came up to tangle themselves in his shaggy, wet hair, pulling roughly at the strands as she lifted herself up on her toes so that he had greater access to her mouth and so that their hips aligned. It was just a simple kiss, but he could already feel himself getting hard as she swivelled her hips in a way that told him she knew exactly what she was doing. His hands cupped her face, fingers scratching lightly against at her cheeks as they sucked and licked at one anothers mouths.

He couldn't get enough of her; she tasted so fucking good, he couldn't even begin to describe it. Later that night, he was going to think back to this kiss and he was going to have no idea why it felt so good, but right now, all he could think about was how he could get more of her. His hands fell from her face, grabbing her hips and holding her harder against his body so that she could feel his arousal pressing into her. One of his hand shifted down the curve of her back, digging into her ass through the thin material of her skirt and she gasped, her mouth falling away from his for a split second, their noses bumping together before she met his lips again.

When they pulled away, they were both panting, their eyes widened as they regarded each other.

The rain was still falling, and they were both still glaring at each other, but now their lips were swollen and red.

Jace took a step back from her, looking her up and down and swallowing hard. Clary didn't say a word as she adjusted her skirt and tucked her hair behind her ears. After another moment, she opened the door to go back into the club, the music becoming a whole lot louder for a moment before she disappeared inside, and the door swung shut behind her.

Jace stared at the closed door, still breathing hard before he shook his head sharply and blinked a couple of times. He opened the door to go into the club, making sure to step slowly because he knew that Clary would not appreciate it if he caught up to her, but he almost tripped over something that was blocking the doorway.

A handbag.

Or more specifically, _her_ handbag. She had it over her shoulder when he had dragged her out of the bar, and it must have fallen off—probably when they were kissing. It was open, and a couple of things had spilled out. Jace crouched down, his body sheltering it from the rain, and he shoved the wallet and lipstick back inside. He was about to shove the last thing back in, but as he did so, he turned it over, and realized that it wasn't just a scrap of paper, but a photo.

It was of Clary, Jocelyn and two other men, one who looked in his forties and one who looked maybe a few years older than Clary. They were all laughing with their arms around each other, and the man next to Clary, who he was assuming was her brother, had his arm wrapped around her neck and pulled in at her. She looked so happy, a grin on her face, her eyes all wide and sparkling.

The date on the bottom of the picture said it was only taken about eight months ago.

He wondered what had happened to the men in the picture, and the girl that looked so completely free, compared to the girl he was seeing now.

 _Instead of songs, this time I want to rave about a couple of things I've watched on Netflix. Obviously, there's_ Jessica Jones _. Okay, I know, I know, I'm a total Marvel freak, but it's amazing! I've had a few friends who aren't into Marvel at all who watched and they were in love. The second is a documentary,_ Hot Girls Wanted. _It's kinda...Sad and shit, but it's really good. About girls who get into amateur porn and don't really know what they're getting themselves into. And then_ Sense8. _Ohmygod._ Sense8. _It is absolutely incredible. I wasn't into it at first, but I stuck with it, and we binged on the whole season in the weekend. It was unlike anything else I've watched, and I definitely recommend._

 _Oh shit!_ AND I SAW _Captain America: CIVIL WAR_ LAST WEEKEND! _Holy shit. Just as good as I had hoped. Couple of things I was a little iffy on but *sighs dreamily* it was very good. Sebastian Stan and Chris Evans and Jeremy Renner all in one movie makes me very happy :) So if anyone is a Marvel fan and wants to fangirl, don't hold back! Especially if you want to fangirl about Stucky or Sebastian Stan talking in Russian or Wanda, who I absolutely fell in love with in this movie._

 _But especially Sebastian talking in Russian, that was like a spiritual experience._

 _Let me know what you think, and I'll send out a preview for a review xx_


	13. Chapter 13

_First of all, I just wanted to say I'm sorry that it took so long to get back to all of your reviews after my last update. There was some weird syncing issue with the reviews and I wasn't able to reply to them normally, so it took a while to go through and reply to you all :( I'm sorry! Secondly, on with the chapter!_

Jace had considered giving the handbag to Izzy and asking her to give it back to Clary—there was no way in hell he was giving it to Sebastian—but then he was going to have to tell her why he had the red heads bag in the first place. He could say something like they had just been in the bar at the same time, but then she would ask why _he_ had the bag, given neither of them were really one for idle conversation.

But then again, he _did_ want to see her again.

And he knew where she lived, so he might as well be the one to return it.

He had been thinking about the kiss all night, the whole thing repeating over and over again in his head. The way her body had felt all tight and soft against his, rolling her hips toward him. The way her lips had been soft and malleable, letting him lead the kiss to a certain point before she started to push back, her teeth biting down on his own lips and swiping her tongue against his.

She had tasted incredible.

And felt incredible.

The whole thing had just been _incredible._

 _So_ that was how he had ended up outside Clary's place at eight in the morning. He was due at work in a couple of minutes, but he was the bosses son and the 2IC, so he could really just show up whenever he wanted. He was guessing that Jocelyn was home, although he didn't know for certain because her car was still being worked on at their garage, but he knew that Clary was definitely there because her car was in the driveway.

He finally took in a deep breath and got out of his sports car, holding the bag in one hand and his keys in the other as he walked up to the door. He knocked twice, and then regretted it instantly and would have considered high-tailing it back to his car if he couldn't already hear footsteps coming toward the door. He clenched his teeth together and waited for the door to open. The footsteps came to a stop at the door, but then there was complete silence, and he wondered if she was going to pretend that he wasn't there.

That just annoyed him, and so out of plain stubbornness, he reached forward and knocked again. There was the slide and clank of locks being opened and then the door swung inwards. Clary was standing there, and Jace's eyebrows raised as he took her in.

Wearing a pair of sweats, fluffy purple slippers and a long sleeved shirt that announced _Darth Vader Was Framed_.

It was adorable and completely opposite what he expected, and he had to bite back a smile. That was a little easier as his eyes dropped down to the ground where she was flanked by two cats. There was something about the stink eye that the black cat was looking at him that made him think she remembered him from the other day, and he was hella glad that they couldn't tell on him for watching their owner sleep.

"If you want a repeat of last night, I'm telling you now, you can turn your ass right back around," she told him flatly.

"No, I'm not here about...That," Jace replied.

"Then what do you want?" Clary asked, leaning against the door frame and staring at him. He couldn't help but look down, and the black cat was still glaring up at him. The white one looked a little nicer, but was still standing almost protectively in front of the red head.

"You left this behind last night," he told her, holding out her handbag. Clary raised her eyebrows in surprise and leaned forward to take the handbag from him.

"Oh," she flashed him a look that was nowhere near a smile but maybe wasn't as angry as it could have been. "Oh, thanks."

"Baby, who's at the door?!" Came a shout from inside.

"No one, mum!" Clary yelled back before rolling her eyes back to Jace. "Thanks, and, uh, I'll see you around, okay?" She made a move to close the door but then there were shoes clipping down the hallway and Jocelyn appeared behind Clary. When she recognized Jace, she smiled widely and purposefully put her hand on the door to keep it open.

"Jace!" Clary's eyes widened as she looked between the two of them.

"You two know each other?" She asked.

"He's the lovely young man who brought me home the other day when my car broke down," Jocelyn said before smiling back at Jace. "Are you here about my car?" The beautiful smile on her face looked like the complete opposite from the scowl on her daughters face, even though everything else about the two woman looked so similar.

"No, actually, I was just giving back Clary's bag. She, uh, left it behind at the bar last night," Jace replied, nodding down at the bag in Clary's hand. Jocelyn looked down at the bag and tilted her head to the side.

"Oh, that's nice of you. I didn't know that you two knew each other," she said, waving her hand between them.

"We don't," Clary began.

"More like we just have mutual friends," Jace interjected. Jocelyn's eyebrows were arched as she looked between the two and shrugged.

"Okay, well, would you like to come in for a cup of coffee, Jace? As a thank you for returning my daughters bag and also for saving my ass the other day," Jocelyn grinned and pushed the door open even wider. It was clear that Clary would rather stick forks in her eyes but she stepped backwards and then turned into the doorway to her left. The two cats ran after her and Jocelyn just shrugged at her daughters abrupt exit, still looking expectantly at Jace.

"Uh, sure," Jace returned Jocelyn's smile. "That would be great." He kicked off his shoes and walked down the hallway, his socked feet slipping slightly on the wooden floor. He could hear some kind of chatter coming from the lounge, and he assumed that Clary was watching TV, and he hoped that the kitchen edged onto the same room so he could catch another glimpse of her.

"So how is my car coming along? I'm extremely grateful for your help, but I am definitely hoping that I'll have it back soon. It's getting a little annoying that I have to keep getting rides to work with my boss," Jocelyn said as she walked over to the coffee maker.

"It's not a hard fix, I've got one of my boys looking it over, and it should be all done by the end of the week. I'll get it brought over once it's done," Jace told her, his eyes continually moving around the room. It was full of color, all the containers painted different colors, and three different canvases with paintings on them in the room. They were all quite small, but they were all amazing.

"Clary painted those," Jocelyn pointed out as she saw him looking at the paintings. "She's talented, right?"

"They're amazing," he agreed. He wasn't too sure what else he was meant to say, but then there was a toot outside and Jocelyn made a face.

"Shit, that's my ride," she said. It was at that point that Jace realized she was only wearing one shoe and she started looking around for the other one, throwing a harried looking over her shoulder at Jace. "I'm not a morning person at all, if you couldn't already tell." He grinned at her as she let out a triumphant noise and pulled a shoe out from behind the kitchen table. She put the shoe on and then ducked her head through the archway that must have lead into the lounge. "Baby, I want you to finish making Jace a coffee. He's the guest, okay?"

"Mum—"

"Don't be all pissy, baby," Jocelyn rolled her eyes. "I raised you better than that."

"You did not!" Came a protest from Clary and Jace's eyes swung to Jocelyn, wondering what her response would be. Jocelyn just let out a laugh as she grabbed her bag from the table.

"Thank you again, Jace, for the bag and for my car," she smiled at Jace and then headed into the lounge. Jace followed after her, a few steps behind, and saw Clary, sitting on the couch with a blanket pulled over her waist with her eyes on the TV. "I love you, baby," Jocelyn said, leaning down to kiss Clary on the cheek.

"Love you more, mum," Clary replied, flashing a smile which completely dissolved when she caught sight of Jace in the doorway. Jace was honestly surprised by the interaction between the two—he couldn't really imagine Clary as the kind who said the words 'I love you' so easily. Although it was to her mother, so it wasn't as though it was completely unusual. The front door shut and Clary's eyes were still on Jace. "You can leave now," she told him. Jace considered doing what she had asked, but then a cheeky smile pulled at the corners of his mouth.

"No," he replied with a raise of the arch of his eyebrows. "I'm the guest, remember?" Clary's lips parted and her eyes narrowed as she gave an exasperated sigh as if to ask _'are you serious?'_ He just stared back at her until she finally let out a huff and got off the couch, tossing the blanket to the side and pausing the TV before stomping almost childishly past him and into the kitchen. There was some clanking and banging as she prepared the coffee, and in the mean time, Jace sat down on the arm chair next to the sofa. Both cats were on the blanket that had been covering Clary, and the black one was glaring at him again. When she came back into the room and practically shoved the coffee cup into his hand, he nodded at the cat. "That cat is your spirit animal," he commented, tempted to point out that they practically had mirrored resting bitch face syndrome.

"Damn right she is," Clary muttered, picking up Shadow and rubbing her face against her fur. "Hurry up and finish your fucking coffee."

"I preferred it when your mum was here," Jace fired back at her and Clary snorted, but there was a slight sparkle in her eyes.

"Then get your ass out the door," she replied before picking up the remote and resuming playback of her DVD, turning it up a couple notches in volume to purposefully discourage any further conversation. Jace looked at the TV for the first time and almost spat out his coffee when he saw what she was watching.

 _Pocahontas_.

"You like...Disney movies?" He asked disbelievingly.

"Either people like Disney movies, they're lying about liking Disney movies, or they're heartless pieces of shit," Clary replied, her voice snippy. "Now shut up and finish your coffee so you can leave." Jace fell quiet, but he drank the coffee slowly. He wasn't against Disney movies or anything, although he really didn't watch movies in general, he didn't have the time. But even now, he was spending most of his time watching Clary rather than the TV. She looked completely caught up in the movie, and at one point, he caught her mouthing along to the song.

It was adorable.

"So you like all Disney movies then?" He said after about ten minutes and Clary huffed before looking over to him, acting as though he was the biggest imposition to her life.

"Yes," she said. "Mainly. The good ones, at least."

"Even the princessy ones? I don't really take you as the princess kind of girl."

"Every girl is a Disney princess kind of girl," Clary muttered, her eyes still trained on the TV. "Or at least they start out that way—which reminds me, why are you still here?" Jace shook his head and let out a short laugh. "This is one of my favorite movies of all time and you're totally disrupting my me-time."

"Okay, you've made your point," Jace swallowed back the rest of coffee and put it down on the table. He had no idea what it was with this girl, but he was totally into the snarkiness. "I'll be seeing you around," he said as he stood up and looked down at Clary. She didn't even look up at him, leaning to the side and craning her neck so that she could see the TV. Jace shook his head ruefully and headed out of the house. Just as he was about to close the door, he heard a call from the lounge,

"Laters, Golden Boy."

 _Okay, so I'm going to recommend a couple of songs again! Mainly because I love so many songs that I just have to share them, and also because I absolutely love, love, LOVE you guys giving me songs back. So keep suggesting them, I have a massive list on my computer of your songs and I make my way through all of them :) Anyway, the songs this time;_ Still Here _and_ Devil Within _by Digital Daggers. Fucking amazing, a little bit haunting—both of them. And then there's_ Couple of Kids _by Maggie Lindemann is sweet and has this underlying sort of sad tone to it? But it's gorgeous and I'm addicted. And then the last one is Peach Arizona by drumaq. I've listen to this at least twice every time I get into my car. It's really chilled out and I'm just...God, I'm just in love._

 _Let me know what you guys think!_

 _I absolutely love hearing what you all think :) And for your review, there will be a preview xx_


	14. Chapter 14

_I'm so glad you guys are enjoying the story! Thank you all so much for your reviews and comments and PM's, they're definitely what keep me inspired. On with the new chapter..._

 _Please make sure you're taking a minute to leave a comment, just a few words, at the end. There's lots of you guys reading and following, and it means a lot for you to take a moment to say something :)_

"What time are you working until today?" Jocelyn asked as she stopped by Clary's doorway. Clary looked into the reflection in the mirror where she was putting on her eyeliner and shrugged.

"I think about four," she replied.

"And are you coming straight home? Or are you going to that bar again?" The sentence sounded a little terse and Clary sighed as she looked back at her reflection to finish off her eye makeup and she turned around to face her mother.

"I'll come straight home," she said as she grabbed her shoes from the corner of the room and kissed her mother on the cheek. "I could even start dinner, since I'm going to be home before you. If, ya know, you're all goods with a frozen pizza." Jocelyn gave her a smirk as she squeezed Clary's arm and nodded. "Okay, have a good day at work, mum."

"Oh, baby?" Jocelyn called out as Clary reached the end of the hallway and was bending down to pat each of her cats one at a time before leaving. "How well do you know Jace?" Clary frowned and looked back over her shoulder.

"I don't," she said nonchalantly. "I just saw him at the bar last night."

"So he's not the guy that you had a date with him the other night?"

"No," Clary scrunched up her nose. "No way."

"Why do you say it like it's such a bad thing?" Jocelyn raised an eyebrow. "He seems like a nice boy, and he's cute too."

"He's fucking hot, mum," Clary corrected her with a half smile. "But that's not the point. He's an asshole." Jocelyn smirked.

"Then maybe he's just the kind of guy to balance out your bitchiness," she fired back and Clary rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, whatever. Love you, mum," she said, her voice sugary before she spun on her heel and headed out the door. She drove to work slowly, tapping her fingers against the wheel of the car to the music coming out of her speakers. Of course Jocelyn now wanted her to take up with the Golden Boy, because he just so happened to be the guy who was helping her with her car and he seemed all gentlemanly bringing her bag back. It wasn't exactly like Jocelyn to push her toward someone— _anyone,_ actually—she had always told Clary to finish her University degree and then get as far away from their life as possible to start fresh.

She guessed that had kind of happened now.

She had just finished her degree before this had all happened, and in a way, they had moved away and started fresh.

Maybe Jocelyn thought that it would make her happier if she started seeing someone.

To be honest, she didn't want to see anyone. Or, if she had the choice to see anyone, it wouldn't be romantically. It would be her brother.

"Clary!" Simon greeted her as she walked in the front door, a grin on his face. "Missed you yesterday."

"I definitely didn't miss this place," Clary grinned at him as she walked behind the counter and into the kitchen area. Aline was serving a customer but she shot Clary a smile by way of 'hello' before going back to the couple in front of her. Clary pulled off her jacket and hooked it behind the door going into the staff room and then raised her eyebrows when she saw a sealed box with her name scrawled over it sitting on the staff room table. "Hey, Simon?" She took a step out of the staff room and looked over at the fry cook. "What's this?"

"I don't know," Simon shrugged. "It was here when I got here." Clary felt a sense of dread dawn over her and she swallowed hard as she looked back at the box.

To any normal person, the box was exactly what it looked like. A box.

Unfortunately, when Clary was nine, she had opened a box that looked a whole lot like this one that had shown up outside the front door of them.

Inside had been a severed finger and a bunch of photos of a man that Clary knew as Uncle Ben being tortured. Her father had ripped the box away from her, and had disappeared for almost a week after that. When he returned, he had Uncle Ben, but Clary had never really been able to look at him the same again.

"Why don't you open it?" Simon asked, suddenly appearing behind Clary and jolting her forward with shock. His eyebrows shot up as he looked her up and down, clearly taken aback by the frightened look on her face, the color drained. "What's wrong?" He asked her, frowning.

"I, uh," Clary rubbed her hand over her face and tried to force a smile. "Nothing. I'm just tired." That seemed to reassure Simon and he let out a laugh.

"You just had a day off," he shook his head before turning back to head toward the stove. "Good luck." Clary nodded at him before looking back at the box. She could just leave it, but then her co-workers would ask her why she didn't open it because it was human nature; you get a package, you open it as soon as you can.

It couldn't be her father, or any of his men.

Surely.

Clary took in a deep breath and walked over to the box, hooking her fingers in the cello-tape and ripping it up. Her frown deepened and her chin jerked up in surprise.

"What the fuck?" She muttered as she reached into the box and pulled out the shiny, plastic tiara, complete with a couple of pretty pink diamantes. There was a scrap of paper attached, with scratchy handwriting that had to belong to a male. She squinted to read it, and then let out a laugh in disbelief.

 _Always preferred this one over that_ Frozen _shit. Didn't get the hype around it._

 _Eugene is the man, plain and simple._

Underneath the tiara was a DVD, one of her favorite movies. _Tangled_.

"You got a movie? Who got you a Disney movie?" Aline appeared in the doorway her and reached over to snatch the DVD from her. "I love this one!"

"Yeah, uh, it's a good one," Clary quickly got it back of her and shoved it into the box. Aline raised her eyebrows but shrugged.

"Alright, babes, well I've been on since six, so it's your turn to take over!"

* * *

Jace licked his lower lip and tried to control the whoosh of breath that he released from his lungs. He had cooked dinner for himself and Kaelie when he had gotten home from work, and then she had dragged him into the lounge and onto the couch, turning on the TV to some show that she was obsessed him. It was full of fake tans and white trash accents and Jace was bored within the first couple of minutes, but he let her keep it going while his mind wandered.

Clary.

What the hell was he doing with her?

She pissed him off.

But he had no idea why.

It had something to do with that way she looked at him as though she could see right through him, and she really wasn't interested in what she saw. The first time they saw each other, there had been a flicker of appreciation, but he just saw her as what she looked like at face value.

A spoilt little rich girl.

Kind of like Kaelie.

His mother had been killed by a drunk driver, and it made him irrationally angry every time he saw someone coming out of the bar in town and stumble toward their car. He barely ever got drunk himself, and when he was the designated driver, he always drove stone cold sober, he didn't even have a beer or two, though he knew he would be perfectly okay. Not that he had anything against people drinking in general—he loved it when Izzy got drunk, and same with Alec. They were hilarious. And Kaelie always got adventurous when she was drunk, so that was a plus as well.

And then the second time he saw her, he had just had one of his multiple run ins with Sebastian at the car yard. He had been telling their father that he wanted more responsibility around the place, that he wanted a managers position, just like Jace. Except he didn't want any of the duties that came with the role. They ended up in a shouting match that resulted in Jace storming out of the place and finding himself at the supermarket. When he was stressed out, he cooked. That's what calmed him down. Clary had come bouncing over to him in the car park, all hesitant smiles and offers of coffee, and he had shut her down.

Things had just sort of spiraled down from there, and he had realized that he made quite a big mistake in writing her off, because she was definitely not the kind of girl he had first thought she was.

"Are you paying attention?" Kaelie asked, stretching out and looking up at Jace. He forced a smile and nodded, running his fingers through her hair as he tried to concentrate on the TV. But his head just kept drifting back to the kiss in the alley behind the bar, and just the way that his skin had buzzed when he was sitting close to her in his lounge. And how every nerve ending in his body felt like it was bursting to life when he had caught a glimpse of her changing in the lingerie shop and when she had been in the gym, using the punching bag.

Jace let his fingers move from Kaelie's hair and down her back, reaching the curve of her ass and sliding underneath the shirt that she was wearing. Kaelie responded the way he hoped she would, turning over so that she was on her side and pushing herself up on her elbow to reach for his mouth.

The kiss was a little sloppy and awkward from the angle, but then, when Jace thought about it—which he really shouldn't be doing, because he was making out with a beautiful girl—all kisses with Kaelie were kind of...Off. She either used too much tongue, or not enough, and it felt nothing like when he had been kissing Clary. In fact, he had kissed a lot of girls— _a lot_ —and none of them had felt as good as when he had been kissing Clary.

She had the perfect give and take, letting him invade her mouth before she was pushing back and trying to control the kiss, and then allowing him to take over again.

"Baby?" Kaelie pulled away from him and frowned.

"What's wrong?" Jace asked, acting clueless, even though he knew exactly what was wrong. He definitely wasn't giving her his full attention and girls knew things like that. Even ones like Kaelie. She raised an eyebrow at him and he gave her a soothing smile, reaching down to kiss her again. She shifted onto his lap and rocked herself back and forth. By the time she was stripping out of her skirt and lowering herself on his cock, he had managed to push thoughts of the red head out of his mind.

Mostly.

 _Okay, okay, sooooo the songs this time aaaare ;_ Reforget _and_ The Other _, by Lauv. I found these about two weeks ago and I've just been listening to them non-stop ever since. I'm completely head over fucking heels for them. Then there's_ Soldier _by Samantha Jade,_ Don't Let Me Down _by Chainsmokers and_ Lover, Fighter _by SVRCINA. Those last three have all been on repeat every time I get in my car, completely in love with them._

 _Let me know what songs you guys are addicted to at the moment! Please, please, please! I love your suggestions._

 _Another thing; I find it really, really, really hard to find fics that I enjoy and keep my attention. I haven't actually read any Clace, other than stories I've been previously following, in a few months, I've become totally obsessed with the_ Teen Wolf _fandom and, of course,_ Captain America _. But I came across one called_ Picking a God _by IosoIUno and it's ah-mah-zing. Check it out. Also if you guys have any good story recommendations, let me know._

 _Aaaaand, please let me know what you guys thought of the chapter :) Your reviews make me ridiculously happy and they're what keep me writing. And for every signed in review I'll send out a preview xx_


	15. Chapter 15

_Hey guys! There's a couple of things that I need to say and they're kinda serious/sad/angry/whatever so I thought I'd get them over with at the beginning, and then my authors note at the end would be a happy one :) So if you guys wanted to skip forward, totally understandable._

 _The first thing; there's been some real negative reviews going around. Everyone gets them, it's going to happen. It totally sucks, but it's unavoidable. But some people have been going out of their way to leave insanely long, detailed descriptions as to what they hate about stories and, come on, that's just unnecessary. I try to just delete flames and not think about them, they suck and sometimes I get a little pissed off and discouraged, but I try to ignore them. Sometimes it really gets to writers though, and they get mental blocks and choose to stop writing. Can we please just be nice? Constructive criticism—absolutely, but there's a difference. Remember we write for free, and for fun! Come on, everyone!_

 _The second thing; I try not to mention world events on here or even on my social media account for several reasons. But I did want to say I was so upset when I heard about Christina Grimmie dying! I have listened to her on YouTube for years, and I was actually listening to her the morning that I found out she was shot. It's so horrible. I think what freaks me out is I've just listened to her for so long, and she's the same age as me, and it just so scary...It's just not okay :(_

The next Sunday when Jace was driving to the gym, he couldn't help but hope that Clary was going to be there. He told himself that he really shouldn't hope that, but then, it wasn't as though either of them had any obligations. He wasn't with Kaelie, not exclusively, and she wasn't with Sebastian. They were just two adults...Two consenting adults. Doing...Doing who knows what? Jace pursed his lips and shook his head as he headed into the gym and walked down the dark hallway. There was that familiar, sweaty smell of the building and then came to a stop when he reached the main room.

There she was.

Dressed in a pair of work out leggings and a sports bra, her hair pulled back in a ponytail and bouncing as she punched and kicked the punching bag.

"Is that all you do when you're here?!" Jace called as he walked toward her, this time deciding not to give her space and watch from the shadows. Clary looked over at him in shock, and then narrowed her eyes as she realized who it was. She turned back to the punching bag and lashed out, her movements pointed and vicious. Jace pursed his lips at the affront, and considered leaving her alone, but decided against it and dropped his bag. "Do you want to try it on an actual person, rather than an inanimate object?" Clary let out a short, harsh breath through her teeth, focusing on the punching bag. Jace tilted his head to the side and took a few steps closer. "Might help to focus your anger on someone who will fight back?" He wheedled, his voice rising in tone lightly.

"Oh, for fucks sakes!" Clary exclaimed, spinning around, her fists flying toward and only narrowly missing his face when he jumped backwards. He dodged under her arms and took a quick step back, one of his eyebrows raising and giving her a cheeky smirk.

"Come on," Jace encouraged her as he danced backwards. "It will be _fun_ ," he sung out cheekily. She braced her hands, which were wrapped in tape and boxing gloves to stop herself from breaking any bones, on her elbows and glared at him. Jace almost stepped back at the force of her glare, but figured that it was just her usual, fiery personality burning through. Sometimes she almost seemed to verge on nice, but it seemed pretty normal for her to glare.

Especially at him.

"Ten minutes," she told him grudgingly. "Then you promise to piss off?"

"Twenty," he bargained. Clary didn't look happy but jerked her head in a nod. Jace grinned, maybe a little wider than he really should have, and lead the way over to the boxing ring that was set up near the center of the room. Clary climbed into the ring and bounced on the balls of her feet a couple of times as she waited for Jace to wrap up his own hands. He climbed up next to her and lifted his hands in front of him, settling back in a ready stance. Clary narrowed her eyes at him before jabbing on arm forward. Jace let her punch glance of his arm before he gave a half hearted punch back. Clary parried it firmly, smacking his arm out of the way and throwing another hand towards him, this time using a lot more force. "Shit," Jace gave her a grin.

"Shut up," she muttered, her eyes cloudy.

"What?" Jace was still smirking. It was early morning, and he was feeling loose and care-free. And he had to admit, that there was something about the way Clary's eyes were spitting fire every time he smiled tauntingly at her. The look only increased with heat when he actually said something to her. "It was meant as a compliment. Who trained you?" He took a few steps closer, kicking out with his leg and following through with a punch. She knocked his arm away, not replying. "Oh, come on. Where's the friendly banter?"

"Didn't realize that you did 'friendly'," Clary bit out at him. Suddenly there was a flurry of fast punches and Jace's smile dropped off his face as he realized that if he didn't take her seriously, he was actually going to get hit. Apart from the punching gloves, neither of them were wearing any other protective gear, and if she landed one of her punches, it was going to hurt. They were quiet for the next few minutes, the only sounds were their harsh breathing and grunts as they danced around the ring. They broke apart, backing away to separate sides of the ring and staring at each other. There was sweat dripping down Clary's forehead, the red-head already worked up from her earlier excercise, and even Jace was beginning to feel hot.

"I so do friendly!" Jace protested, returning to their earlier conversation as they stared across at each other. "I brought back your bag!"

"After you made me loose it!" Clary fired back.

"I did not!" Jace cried.

"Did too!" Clary snapped, swiping her arm across her head to push back the hair that had fallen in front of her face. "I would never have left that club if you hadn't pulled me out of there!" She lunged at him, her move not quite as precise as the ones before.

"You wouldn't have dropped the bag if you hadn't kissed me!" Jace shouted back, knocking her roughly to the side and out of the way. She stumbled down onto her knees, but was already recovering before he could offer her a hand up.

"What the fuck are you on about?!" Clary huffed out, rolling over and arching her back as she landed back on her feet. " _You_ kissed _me_!" She cried, jumping back toward him, her movements clumsy. This time, he didn't even attempt a proper boxing move, instead ducking under her arms and grabbing her around the waist and using his shoulder to push her to the ground. Before they landed, he twisted his body so that he took the brunt of the fall, gripping her around the waist as she landed on top of him. The pair of them were breathing heavily, and Jace stared up at Clary. Her eyes were squeezed shut, breathing heavily, and after a moment, she rolled away from him, laying on her back on the mat and throwing an arm over her face.

Jace frowned as he looked over at her. There was something about her breathing that was a little off—it didn't just seem like the heavy breathing of someone who had had an intense work out. He rolled onto his side and pushed her hand away from her face, taken aback when he saw tears creating kaleidoscopes in her eyes.

"Hey, I—" he felt awkward. "I didn't mean to be such an asshole," he said ruefully, suddenly feeling completely out of place. He hadn't thought that Clary would be the type of girl to get upset over some pointless teasing. But then again, how well did he really know her? For a moment, it looked as though she was going to say something to him, her pretty, red lips parting. Jace felt his whole body tense before she swallowed hard and narrowed her eyes, the shutters coming crashing back down.

"Oh fuck off," she snapped at him, although her voice sounded a little wobbly as she shoved away his hand where it was still on her arm and rolled over so that she was sitting up properly and stretched out her legs in front of her. "As if you could ever upset me." Jace couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief at that, and then didn't feel so guilty about checking out how flexible she was. She was bent forward from the waist, nose touching her leg. "That doesn't mean you have a free pass to keep perving at me though, jackass." Jace quickly blinked and then started stretching out himself.

"So what's wrong?" He asked, his voice muffled as he twisted his body and then got himself to his feet.

"None of your fucking business," Clary replied, the spite back full force in her voice.

"I was just asking," Jace shrugged, holding out an arm to help her up. She purposefully ignored him, getting to her feet and stalking to the edge of the boxing ring. She pulled off her gloves, her movements jerking as she tossed the gloves to the side and then used her teeth to start loosening her tape. Jace pursed his lips as he looked down at her from the edge of the ring, resting his arms on the ropes. "Sometimes it's good to talk to someone that you don't give a shit about. Because you don't care what their opinion of you is."

"Not giving a shit about you implies that I actually think about you," Clary snipped as she finally unwound the tape and then began balling it up. Once she finished, she took in a deep breath and then turned around to look up at Jace. He raised an eyebrow at her, wondering if she was actually going to talk to him without insulting him. He didn't say anything, giving her time to process what she was thinking before she opened her mouth. "It's the birthday of someone important to me today," she finally said, her voice hesitant. She looked down at the tape in her hands, squeezing it hard. "And it's the first time in my life that I haven't been with them on this day."

"Was it one of the guys in that photo?" Jace asked before he could stop himself and Clary's head snapped up.

"What photo?" She asked him, her eyes wide and pupils suddenly blown. "What photo—what are you talking about?" Her words were clipped and Jace frowned down at her, realizing that she wasn't angry right now, this was something else entirely. "What photo?" She repeated, standing directly underneath him now, her head tilted all the way back to look up at him in the ring.

"Uh," he shook his head. "Uh, your bag. When I picked it up from the bar. It had fallen over and things had fallen out—"

"So you snooped in my stuff?!" Clary demanded.

"I was putting it back! And it was just there!" Jace ducked under the rope and landed on the ground next to her, still a good few inches taller than her so that she needed to keep her head tilted back. "Shit—it's just a photo, Clary! A family photo! What's wrong with that?!" Clary didn't reply, but her chest was heaving. Jace squinted at her, trying to pick up on what was going on behind those bright green eyes of hers. Finally she let out a huff and shook her head. "Wait, where are you going?" He asked as she spun around and began stalking out of the gym. She didn't answer as she snatched up her bag and then continued out of the gym.

Jace sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

He wasn't used to this.

Sure, girls swooned over Sebastian.

But they chased after Jace.

And he had never really been all that interested in them—as sad as it sounded, Kaelie was his longest relationship.

So it seemed kind of typical that the first girl that he was actually interested in seemed as though she had absolutely zero interest back in him.

 _Happier authors note! I promise! A lot of people keep recommending_ War of Hearts _by Ruelle in the reviews. I do love Ruelle, and I love that song, although it's not my favourite by her. Thought that I would just recommend it though, since obviously lots of you guys love it! Other ones that I'm in love with at the moment_ Ritual _by Adam Jensen and_ Rust _by Stalgia. Also a cover of Justin Bieber's_ Sorry _by Our Last Night._

 _Let me know what you guys are listening to! I want to know!_

 _Also, there's been a few more questions about my updating schedule. It's on my profile, people. Check it out._

 _Leave a review, make my day, and I'll send you a preview :) xx_


	16. Chapter 16

_Next chapter! A little bit of background going on here._

Five months and a half months.

That's how long Jocelyn and Clary had been gone.

Jocelyn had always been hot-headed, and that's what had attracted Valentine to her in the first place. He loved that she wasn't afraid to say what she was thinking, and that she acted so fearless. It wasn't just that she was stubborn and intelligent, but it was that she loved with every fiber of her being, and she had been an amazing mother.

When they had first started seeing each other, she had no idea who he was. And by the time they had been seeing each other for four weeks, she was already in too deep to leave. She had been nervous, but she had fallen pregnant so quickly, and she knew that she was better off with him than trying to run back to her home town. He could give her a good life, a lot better than the one she had been leading, and with a child on the way, she couldn't just think about herself.

Jocelyn knew what they were doing wasn't something that was acceptable in normal society, but she had never really had a family, and they had given her one. All the wives and girlfriends and children of the gang members surrounded her through her pregnancy, helping her through every step of the way, and after she gave birth, they never left her alone to deal with first time motherhood alone. And although she knew the kind of life her husband led, it never really sunk in until one night she had gone over to see Valentine at his best friends house, and had walked out into the garage to see the pair of them torturing someone.

That was when Jonathon was about three. Jocelyn didn't say anything about it, there was nothing _to_ say. This was her husband, and this was his life, and that meant that it was her life as well. So she got along with the other woman, and she learnt the necessary first aid off them so that she could stitch Valentine up when he came back after weeks away, all torn and bloody. Her husband and his friends were good to her, and so in turn, she was good to them.

As time went by, though, he became angrier, and there were other woman, and there was lots of drinking, and it took a lot, but Jocelyn was able to get past a lot, including her son joining the gang once he turned sixteen. But one day when Clary got in the way of him when he was having one of his tempers, and he had smacked her right across the face, sending two of her teeth spilling from her mouth. The split on her lip healed, and it was a simple enough dental surgery to put her teeth back in, but Jocelyn could never forgive herself for staying with the man long enough for her to see him hit their daughter.

And so they left.

 _Five months and a half months_.

Almost six months that his wife and daughter had been gone.

Valentine was drunk and high most of the time, and his only focus was getting Jocelyn and Clary back. At first he had been upset, sad that they were gone. But as the weeks went by, it was replaced with vicious anger.

Jonathon hoped like hell that his mother and sister were somewhere safe, because he didn't want to think about what would happen if he caught up with them. His father had people on the look out everywhere, and he was paying off as many cops as he could, trying to find out what had happened. The hunt had completely taken over his life, and with the way he kept sitting up in his office, sharpening his knives and reloading his guns, worried Jonathon.

Valentine had forgotten absolutely everything else in his life, including his sons birthday.

* * *

"So you know how you had that date with Sebastian the other night and I never asked you about it?" Aline asked, leaning her hip against the counter as she picked up a french fry from the plate that she had had Simon cook for her and Clary. It was after the lunch time rush, and the diner was almost empty except for a dad and his daughter who were sitting down the end, and so Clary, Aline and Simon were all out the back talking.

"Because it was none of your business?" Clary countered with a raised eyebrow. "You mean that one?"

"That's the one," Aline wasn't perturbed by Clary's tone, pointing her chip over at the red head. "How did it go?"

"It went," Clary shrugged, picking up another couple of chips and dipping them into the aioli sauce. "Sex was good. Not great, but good."

"Are you seeing him again?" Aline continued.

"I don't know," she gave a one shouldered shrug. "Probably not. I mean, it's not like we had some soul binding connection or anything. I'm not after that shit." Aline stared at her for a moment longer and Clary rolled her eyes. "Why? What's with all the questions?"

"You had that present here when you came in the other day," she replied. "I was wondering if it was from him."

"You think that Sebastian is the kind of guy to give someone a present?" Clary snorted as she tossed a few more chips into her mouth. There was a ring of a the bell as someone came in the front door, but Clary didn't bother heading out just yet; people usually took a few minutes to stare at the menu before they finally placed an order.

"Good point," Aline conceded. "Then who was it from?" Clary smirked at her as she wiped off her hands on a napkin. Without answering, she pushed open the door separating the kitchen and staff room from the actual restaurant.

And standing at the counter was the man of the hour.

Sebastian.

"Hi," Clary said shortly as she walked over to the till and put her hands down flat on the counter. "What can I get you?" Sebastian flashed her a smile, one that had probably charmed a lot of ladies, and leaned forward on his eyebrows.

"Just came here to see you," Sebastian smirked at her.

"Oh, really?" Clary had an expression on her face which could only really be described as a cringe. "You know we're kind of done, right?" She didn't sugar down her words, and didn't even give him a smile to sweeten the blow. "Last week was fun and all, but it was a one off kind of situation. So if you want a burger and a milkshake, I'm your girl. You want someone to suck your cock?" She shook her head. "That ain't me." Sebastian looked surprised at her words, straightening up and staring at her for a few seconds, just blinking, as though waiting for her to say that she was kidding. When she didn't, he shrugged.

"Alright, babe. I'll see you around," he said, backing out of the diner. "Call me if you get bored again, I'm always down for some fun." Aline came out from the back room, her eyes wide.

"Uh...What happened there?" She asked.

"I told you that I probably wouldn't see him again," Clary replied. "I just passed that on." Aline snorted.

"Shit, girl. You're cold," she shook her head. Clary shook her head and shrugged, heading back into the kitchen where Simon was warbling along to some old My Chemical Romance song. Everything that she had told Aline was completely correct, she really wasn't thinking about seeing Sebastian again. They had had fun, but that was all she was really after.

Besides, when she had been getting herself off these past couple of nights, it was Jace's kiss that was doing the job, surprisingly enough. Not the sex she had had with his step-brother.

* * *

"Shit—you're going to _what_?!" Jace cried out. Alec looked a little worried, chewing down on his lower lip, his eyes darting between the item in his hand and then back up at his best friend. Jace was still staring at him, trying to process what Alec had just told him. Finally, his face relaxed into a grin. "That's amazing. I mean, I'm surprised—but then... _Not_ as well?" He laughed. "Congratulations, bro."

"Really?" Alec still looked nervous.

" _Yes_!" Jace slapped his hands down on Alec's shoulders and stared at him. "Yes, it's going to be amazing. I mean, you realize that Magnus and Izzy are going to take over the whole thing, right?"

"But that's fine," Alec let out a short laugh. "You know I'm not into that kind of thing." Jace laughed as he gave him a tight hug, before backing away and taking the little box from his hand. Inside was a wedding band, one that looked as though it would suit Magnus. Jace wasn't too sure how the whole wedding ring thing worked—well, he knew if it was a girl, they expect some massive diamond most of the time, but with guys, he would personally only want a simple band, and he knew that Alec was the same. Magnus on the other hand would want something a bit more fancy, and that's what Alec had done. It looked like white gold, and the center had a ring of tiny diamonds circling the band. "You think he'll like it?" Alec's voice was strained.

"Magnus is completely head over heels in love with you, Alec," Jace grinned. "I mean, sure, he will love this with the diamonds and shit, but you could give him a fruit loop and propose and you know that he would say yes." Alec laughed, shaking his head as he took the ring back and looking down at it. His shoulders sagged a little, relieved of the tension.

"So you don't think that I'm making a mistake?" He asked quietly.

"No," Jace shook his head adamantly. "I mean... _I'm_ not ready for anything like that, but you and Magnus? You guys are perfect together." Alec started talking, a hundred words a second it felt like, and Jace just sat down on the back of s sofa and watched his best friend ramble away excitedly with a small smile on his face.

"I'm going to go out of town this week to talk to Magnus' aunt. I mean, I want to do this right, you know? And she's the one who raised him, and so I want to do the whole asking permission thing..." Alec kept going and Jace couldn't keep the grin off his face.

Sure, _he_ wasn't into this whole true love thing. He did love people—Isabelle and Alec and their little brother, Max Lightwood—but he had never actually been _in_ love with someone. His mother had been in love with his father, and he had screwed her over at pretty much every twist and turn. He had cheated on her throughout their whole marriage, including when she was pregnant with Jace himself. She had become bitter and twisted, and she was just a shell of a woman until she was killed in a car accident.

Jace wasn't against the idea of being in love with someone, but he certainly wasn't looking for it. Parents were meant to be the ones who showed you how beautiful love could be, and his parents had certainly screwed up that example.

But he knew Alec loved Magnus, just like he knew Simon loved Isabelle. It was in the way they looked at each other and the way that they moved when they were in the same room as each other. Even when they weren't next to each other, they moved around as though there was still this link between them, and when they _were_ next to each other, it was like they breathed in sync. Their eyes seemed to glow and everything about them just became better, happier.

If he found someone who affected him like that, then maybe love wouldn't be exactly be a bad thing.

 _Aw._

 _Jace is catching feelings._

 _I'm gonna take a moment here to completely fangirl over_ Harry Potter _. Me and my hubby had a bit of a marathon over the weekend and it just brought back my complete love for it all over again. The books, the movies—_ Harry Potter _is life! Haha. My favourite line in the whole series—which totally isn't meant to be funny and shit but makes me piss myself every time it comes on because I was high as hell when I first watched the movie is '_ oh no, the invisibility booster must be faulty! _'. Once again, not funny, but holy shit, I just can't stop myself from melting own whenever I hear that line. My fave characters are kind of completely opposite personalities. Hahaha. It's Ron and Bellatrix. Completely love them both. Closely followed by Hagrid, Snape and McGonagall._

 _Tell me your favourite_ HP _character! I'm all about the fangirling :) xx_

 _Let me know what you thought of the chapter. Leave a review, they make me oh so happy :)_


	17. Chapter 17

_Thanks for all your amazing comments and the follows/favorites!_

"Hey, baby!" Kaelie called out as she walked in the side door of Jace's house. Jace cringed as she heard her heels snapping against the tiles of his kitchen as she joined him in the lounge. It had been two days since Alec had told him that he was going to propose to Magnus, and he hadn't been able to stop thinking about it. It wasn't as though anything had dramatically changed, he wasn't about ready to go out there and look for someone to get hitched to and have a couple of kids and two stories house with a picket fence. But maybe he didn't need to fool around with someone who had a brain the size of corn kernel.

"Kaelie," Jace gave her a nod as she leaned down to give him a kiss. The smile on her face dropped as he pulled his face backwards and she straightened up.

"What's going on?" Kaelie asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Look, this...This thing that we've got going on," he waved his hand between the two of them. "It was never meant to be anything permanent, and we both knew that we were only in this to have a bit of fun."

"Well, I thought that maybe something else could come of it," Kaelie was frowning, and her lower lip was sticking out a little in an extremely unattractive manner. "I mean, we've known each other for so long. I know that we never put any labels on what we had, but I thought that maybe as time went by, we could—"

"Kaelie, I'm sorry," Jace stood up, taking in a breath through his nose as he put his hands on his hips. He really wasn't good with this kind of thing, it was one of the reasons why he didn't do the whole girlfriend thing. "I'm sorry, but for me, it was just sex. I always said that, I never wanted to lead you on. We had fun, but I think that we should call it quits. And, I mean..." he lamely reached out to touch her shoulder. "If you're feeling something and I don't, then that's even more of a reason to stop what we've got going." Kaelie locked her jaw and her nostrils flared a little.

"Sounds like you've got this all figured out," she stated.

"This is what I think is best," Jace nodded. Kaelie clicked her teeth together and dropped her shoulder, so that his hand fell off, and he tucked it into his pocket.

"Fine," she snipped. "Well, whatever you think is best," her voice dropped almost to a snarl before she spun around and was stalking back out of the room. Jace waited until he heard the engine of her car start before he sat back down and let out a sigh of relief.

* * *

There was a party on this weekend, but Jace knew that Kaelie was going to be there, and he really wasn't too sure how things would go if they got drunk together. Sure, he had been resolute when talking to her when he was sober, but if he got drunk and horny, and she started rubbing up against him—he was only human! And that would start the cycle all over again and he really wasn't in the mood for another one of the run ins like he had had the other night. So Saturday night rolled around, and Jace was more than happy to be sitting on his couch with an old movie playing on the TV and a tumbler of scotch in his hand.

And maybe it wasn't just Kaelie that he was trying to avoid tonight.

He was planning on getting drunk because he didn't want to think about what he had been thinking about the other night when Alec had come over. That feeling that maybe he was missing something important, that his friends had found a lot sooner than him.

"Jace! Yo, Jace!" He heard Isabelle shouting from the front door. He didn't bother getting up, and just like he thought, a few seconds later she was unlocking the door with her spare key and was walking in. She was wearing a tiny white dress, her tits nearly spilling over the top, and her face all made up for a night out. "Oi, what's going on? You're not even dressed."

"I'm not going out tonight, Iz," Jace said.

"Yes, you are," Isabelle nodded. "I came out of my way to pick you up, you're definitely coming."

"Iz, I'm just not in the mood tonight. I don't want to face Kaelie," Jace sighed.

"Then I'll keep you two apart," Isabelle smirked at him. "Hurry up and put some clothes on." Jace knew that there was no way that Isabelle would take no for an answer, but he trusted her when she said that she would keep him away from Kaelie. If there was anyone who hated Kaelie, it would be Isabelle. He went to his bedroom while she waited in the lounge, and got dressed into a pair of jeans and a button down shirt, and then came back out. "Ready?" He let his cousin lead him out the front door and then stopped short when he saw Clary sitting in the backseat of the car, Simon in the drivers seat. She didn't look surprised to see him, so Isabelle must have told her where they were going and who they were getting, but she didn't look particularly happy. She went back to looking at her phone, her fingers tapping across the screen.

"What's she doing here?" Jace grunted as they approached the car.

"She's my friend," Isabelle jabbed him conspicuously in the side. "Be nice," she said warningly as she got into the backseat, giving her cousin the front passenger seat. He couldn't help it, he looked over his shoulder at Clary when he got into the car, taking in the outfit she was wearing. It looked like something that Isabelle might wear, and it did wonders for her figure, which was already perfect as it was. His eyes eventually reached her face, and she was staring at him with an arched eyebrow, and Isabelle leaned forward, slapping him in the back of the head.

"Are we heading to Maia's?" Jace asked, looking over at Simon.

"Well, that's where the party is," Simon muttered as he reversed out of the driveway. "So yeah, I guess that's where we're going." Things between the boys were always tense, given their history at high school. Jace was the jock and Simon was a nerd, and so they automatically didn't get on. They were better now, but not perfect. The girls were loud on the way there, and Jace had an idea that they had already been drinking. The two boys in the front seat were quiet, and Jace couldn't help but smile a little as he listened to Clary singing along with his cousin to an old Backstreet Boys song that came on the iPod. When he glanced over at Simon, he saw the same small smile on his face as well.

Clary and Isabelle disappeared as soon as they got to the party, and as closely as Jace tried to follow her with his eyes, there were a lot of people, and he couldn't keep track of her. Simon melted away as well, leaving him alone, and he groaned under his breath.

He really didn't want to be there.

"Jace?" Alec put his hand down on Jace's shoulder, and he turned around.

"Oh, hey, bro," Jace gave him a hug. He looked around surreptitiously and lowered his voice when he spotted Magnus not to far away. "So how did it go? Did you see his aunt?"

"Yup," Alec nodded a couple of times, his teeth clenching for a moment. "She was happy, all for it. So now I just have to ask him."

"You know Mag's is going to say yes," Jace nudged him in the side with his elbow. "It's going too be fine." Alec winced and shrugged. "Come on, let's go get me a drink." The two of them headed toward the table laid out just outside the house. Jace mixed himself a drink with bourbon, swallowing it all back in one go. Alec raised his eyebrows at him as Jace poured another.

"You okay?" He asked quietly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Jace muttered as he threw back the second drink. He threw that one back as well and went to pour himself a third but Alec but his hand out to stop him.

"You don't want to get drunk too quickly," he warned him, a little unnecessarily.

"It's a party," Jace replied, pointedly pushing Alec's hand out of the way. "That's exactly what I'm going to do." Alec shrugged and stepped back. He barely ever drunk at things like this anyway, he was usually the sober driver. Magnus and Jace tended to drink enough for the both of them, as well as his sister, and he preferred it when he had total control over his body. Never got the attraction of being drunk and not remembering what he did when he woke up the next day.

There were people sprawled throughout the lawn, and Maia was making the rounds, being a good hostess as she gave everyone a hug and kiss. Jordan seemed to be gravitating toward her, refilling her drink cup and asking her to dance, which was a bit surprising. Maia had always had a thing for him but Jordan had always kept his distance, had never seemed to interested.

It seemed as though everyone was starting to pair up, Jace noted as he moved onto his sixth drink within an hour, which just reinforced his whole reason behind getting drunk in the first place. The only difference to his original plan was the change of scenery, no longer getting drunk at home but at a party.

"Shit, man! We just got here!" Isabelle cried as she found her cousin and noted the glazed look in his eyes. She had clearly taken something again because her pupils were blown and she looked as though she was full of adrenaline. Clary was close behind Jace and he couldn't help but glance over at her, and follow as she bent forward slightly, her perfect ass sticking out as she poured herself a drink. The dress she was wearing clung to her ass, riding up so that he caught a glimpse of the lower curves, and he felt his breathing catch in his throat before he turned his attention back to Isabelle. "Shit, uh, nine o'clock," Isabelle muttered suddenly, her eyes darkening.

"I'm pretty sure it's later than that," Jace snorted.

"No, I mean, like...Nine o'clock," Isabelle nodded her head and Jace spun around, seeing what she was talking about.

Kaelie.

Looking right at him with a tilt of her head and eyes glowering.

"That's three o'clock, dumb ass," he said as he turned back around and tapped his finger against the side of his red solo cup.

"She the reason that you're drinking so much? I didn't think that you liked her _that_ much," Isabelle raised her eyebrows.

"I didn't—don't," Jace said. "It's got nothing to do with her." His eyes swung back to Clary and Isabelle followed his gaze, narrowing her eyes. She opened her mouth to say something when there was a bit of a commotion behind them and the unmistakable, high pitched laugh of Kaelie. Jace could see from Isabelle's face that something had happened and he couldn't help but turn around and look.

Kaelie and Sebastian.

Making out.

Jace locked his jaw at the pair of them together. It really shouldn't bother him, and if it was one of them without the other, then it wouldn't. But Kaelie was making out with Sebastian because she knew that he was the one person that would bother him the most, and Sebastian was making out with Kaelie because he loved to get under Jace's skin, and kissing the girl he had been fooling around with was the perfect way to do it.

He swallowed hard, and before he could stop himself, his hand shot out to wrap around Clary's wrist as she came to stand next to Isabelle. She let out a surprised squeak as he dragged her in close to him and smashed his lips down hard on hers. Her body remained stiff against his, but she didn't pull away straight away. When she did, she had a blank look on her face but a furious glint in her eye. He thought for a moment that she was going to slap him, but instead of making a scene, she jerked her arm out of his hand and stalked inside.

"What the fuck was that about?" Isabelle growled at him as he turned to watch her go. She had to walk past Kaelie and Sebastian, and clearly they had both seen the kiss, because Kaelie stormed off and Sebastian was glaring at his step-brother.

Weirdly enough, though, knowing that he had one-upped Sebastian didn't make him feel as good as he usually would, and he went after Clary. His legs were feeling a little unsteady, and the world spun a bit, but he managed to make it inside. There were a couple of girls making out against the door frame, and usually he would stop to appreciate it, but he saw a flash of Clary's red hair as she walked out of the main hallway and out the front door. He followed after her, pushing open the front door and pressing his lips together when he saw her standing on the front deck.

She glared at him as he came out to stand next to her.

"So, what? I'm just some piece of ass in the weird pissing match between you and your brother now?" She snapped at him.

"Step-brother," he couldn't help but correct her, even though he knew that really wasn't going to make things better right now. She rolled her eyes at him, sucking her lower lip into her mouth.

"If you ever use me to make someone jealous again, I will cut your tongue out, you hear me?" She told him, her voice tight and angry. Jace snorted and rolled his eyes, and it was the alcohol mixed together with his general sarcastic attitude that made him spit out his next line,

"That's a little hypocritical, given the impression I get from you is that you use guys because you're angry at the world." Clary narrowed her eyes, and this time she did hit him. But instead of a slap like he would expect from a girl, it was a solid punch, right to the mouth.

 _Oh my god, so I re-watched_ What A Girl Wants _in the weekend, it came up on my Netflix. Forgot how much I loved the movie. And—holy shit—I realized it came out thirteen years ago! I feel so old. I can't even remember the amount of times I watched it when I was about twelve or thirteen. I also had a massive crush on Oliver James, it was ridiculous. But he was just such a babe! And he had a guitar and a motorbike, which was just so cool when you were a teenager ;) Haha. Oh and a couple of songs from there which I'm in love with is_ Half Life _by Duncan Sheik and_ Ride of Your Life _the cover by Oliver James._

 _Also, side note, I'm thinking about a werewolf AU. Can you tell I've been reading too much_ Teen Wolf _? Haha. But what's your thinking? Jace would be an Alpha and Clary would be human. What are your thoughts?_

 _Please leave a review, and let me know what you think :) I'll send you a preview for a review :)_


	18. Chapter 18

_Lots of mixed feelings about our two. They are both a little muddled up in the head. But this is the chapter is a bit of a turning point, staring to look up for our lovelies._

Jace wasn't too sure what happened the rest of the night at Maia's, but he knew that he didn't go home with Isabelle. He woke up the next morning at Magnus and Alec's place, sleeping fully clothed in the spare room. His head was pounding and he went back to sleep, waking up well after lunch. Alec cooked both his boyfriend and his best friend a big, greasy lunch, and the two of them had tried to eat away their hangover. Alec clearly wanted to ask about what had happened the night before—the kiss with Clary and how in the hell he ended up with a split lip—but he didn't. He knew Jace well enough to know that if he wanted to talk about it, then he would eventually open.

But when he got home that night, he knew that he had to apologize to Clary.

He was a jackass, even when he wasn't drinking, but he knew when he was in the wrong.

So the next day he left work a bit earlier, around half past four. Stephen didn't really care when the boys finished, he didn't keep tabs on either of his sons, which was probably why he didn't know that Sebastian barely ever showed up and Jace was running the store all by himself. He went by _Taki's_ , looking more than a little out of place in his button down shirt which was tucked into his suit pants, his tie tightened around his neck. Aline was behind the counter and she gave him a smile as he approached her.

"Hey, Jace. What's up?" She greeted him before zeroing in on his mouth. "Ooh, what happened to your lip?" She winced a little as she looked at it.

"Hey, Aline," he gave her a tight smile and a nod, ignoring her question about his mouth. He didn't know her all that well, even though they had gone to school together, but they saw each other at parties and around the town. "Look, I was wondering if you could tell me if Clary's on? Or what time she finishes?" Aline raised an eyebrow at him and smirked.

"That's a little stalkerish," she commented. "If you guys were friends, you could just text her."

"How do you know we're not friends?" Jace countered.

"Because Clary doesn't have all that many friends," Aline snorted. "And because she has some bruises on her knuckles which probably match up with the split you have in your lip." Jace paused and then let out a laugh, shaking his head. "She's out the back, I'll go see if she's busy," she said as she pushed open the swinging door and went through into the kitchen. He gave them a few minutes, standing there awkwardly by the counter, tapping his fingers against the bench top, before Clary came through the door. Even though she was alone, Jace could see Aline and Simon standing on the other side of the gap in the wall, watching them.

"You want me to mess up some more of your pretty face?" Clary asked bluntly.

"Aw, so you think I'm pretty?" Jace teased her and she sighed, rolling her eyes. Clary just stared at him, unmoved and the smile dropped off his face. "Do you get off soon?"

"I've just finished," she replied, and it was then he noticed the handbag over her shoulder. "What do you want?" Jace hadn't quite thought that far ahead and for a moment he stuttered. Then he shook his head and stepped aside.

"Did you want to come for a drive?" He asked her.

"No," she made a face at him. "Why the fuck would I want to do that?" Jace sighed, scratching his head for a second before rephrasing his question.

"Will you come for a drive with me?" She just stared at him. "Please?" Clary huffed a sigh. " _Please_?"

"How bad did that taste coming out of your mouth?" She actually looked as though she was going to smile at him before she let out a sigh. "Fine. But don't think that I won't punch you in the face again if you're an asshole." Jace conceded with a nod leading the way out of the diner. He pushed open the door and then held it open for her as she walked past him. He lead the way to his Corvette and made a move to open the passenger door for her, but he stopped when she gave him a narrow eyed look. He held up his hands, palm upward, and then backed around to his side of the car, unlocking it, and getting inside. She put her bag on the ground, clicked in her seat belt and then leaned back in the seat. Jace couldn't help glancing over at her, at the way the skirt she was wearing hiked up around her tanned legs, and almost jumped when she snapped her fingers.

"You don't miss a thing, do you?" He muttered as he turned on the engine of the car and shifted the car into reverse.

"Nope," Clary replied, crossing her legs purposefully to put some distance between herself and his hand that was the on the gear stick. Jace shook his head, unable to help his smirk as he pressed his foot to the floor, accelerating out of the town. It only took a couple of minutes to get out township, and then even the residential areas didn't take him that long to get clear of. "Where are we going?" Clary questioned, frowning out the window.

"Uh, there's this lake up ahead," Jace said quietly. "Thought we could talk."

"Didn't think we had all that much to talk about," Clary sighed. "I thought I was just some drunk, remember? Some whore drunk."

"For fucks sakes, you gotta let that go!" Jace exclaimed and the look that he got from Clary was one of mild surprise, her eyes widening a little. She didn't snap at him though, so he thought that he might as well just keep going before she interrupted him. "You're a bitch, okay? Like, maybe not all of the time, but a lot of the time. And you say a lot of shit that I'm pretty sure you don't mean." She still wasn't saying anything. "So I'm sure you get that other people are the same. As in, sometimes they say or do shit they don't mean, or that they regret later. And so I wanted to say...That I'm sorry and shit." Probably wasn't the most elegant apology in history, but he had never been particularly good at them, and he hoped that the girl next to him could appreciate the effort. Clary looked over at him, her green eyes slanted as she squinted, but then her face relaxed into a smirk.

"Alright," she shrugged. Jace's eyes widened in frustration.

"Wait—th-that's it? That's all it took?!" He cried. Clary shrugged again, looking out the window as he began to slow down, approaching the gravel parking area beside the lake. "You're not expecting me to grovel or buy you flowers or, I don't know— _whatever_?!"

"Dude, who the fuck do you think I am? Your wife?" She screwed up her nose in distaste.

"No, but you're a chick," Jace made a face. "Generally they require a bit more...I don't know, something a bit more fancy?"

"Uh, well, no. Maybe if you were someone who actually had the power to hurt my feelings, then you would need to make it up to me. _But_ you're not, so you don't," she smirked at him and grabbed the handle as he parked the car, pushing it open and getting out. Jace sat in the drivers seat for a few minutes, what she had said sinking in.

He really didn't understand this girl.

He got out of the car and followed after Clary. She climbed onto the picnic table in front of the lake, swinging her legs against the edge as she waited for him. Jace's shoes crunched on the gravel as he walked over to her, standing a couple of feet away rather than sitting beside her or on the seats of the table.

"When I saw Sebastian and Kaelie together it kind of threw me through a loop. There's always been this thing between us, competitive side or whatever, and so I—"

"Dude, you've said sorry. And I'm," she paused for a moment. "And I'm sorry, too. So, you wanna just move on?" Clary tilted her head to the side and raised her eyebrows. Jace stared at her, his eyes slanted and his mouth twisted. Then he shook his head and let out a short laugh of disbelief.

"So where does that leave us?" Jace asked. "Because we're not exactly friends...And if we're not apologizing then this whole being alone out by a lake thing is kind of weird, right?"

"Sounds like the start of a really bad horror movie," Clary wiggled her eyebrows at him and once again, Jace laughed, surprised by how easy it seemed to be talking to her.

"Something like that," he agreed, shoving his hands into his pockets and idly kicking at the gravel with the toe of his boot. Clary regarded him for a couple of seconds, frowning, and he could feel her green eyes sweeping over him.

"You need to relax, you know?" Clary kicked her legs out, swinging them under the table, and Jace watched them, from her thighs that disappeared under the short black skirt down to her feet which were still in ridiculously high heels. "I mean, you're always so uptight. Always. Like the first night that we met?" Jace's expression tightened as he remembered her walking toward her car after she had come out of the bar. "Look, I stand by the fact I only had a couple of drinks, and I would have been fine driving. You acted as though I was falling head over ass drunk, which I was not—"

"I thought you were being cool and totally over this," Jace groaned.

"I am cool and over it. I'm totally cool and over it," Clary rolled her eyes. "I'm just saying that you need to get over yourself. Honestly." Jace's lips tightened and she slid off the table. "You always look as though you take everything super seriously, and all up tight and shit. God, even when you're meant to be having fun and out drinking—like at the party the other night—you act as though you have the weight of the world on your shoulders. And I mean," she glanced back at his expensive car and then up and down at his expensive suit. "You really don't have it that hard, dude. I saw your fancy house and I know where you work, remember? I'm intimately aware of your work space." She winked cheekily and Jace tried not to grimace at the thought of her and Sebastian getting it on at the car yard.

"So you're asking me to change my personality?" Jace snorted.

"I'm pretty sure walking around like you have a stick up your ass _isn't_ actually a personality," Clary stuck out her tongue at him and Jace blinked, surprised by the playful action. "And I'm pretty sure that you'll have more fun if you just loosen up." That was pretty much what Isabelle told him on a weekly basis. "Look, I have a very important date with my cats and my mum and a new DVD I got, called _Tangled_ ," Clary began and he grinned at the reference to his gift. "So I would appreciate it if you could give me a lift back to town." Jace's smile dropped as he realized their little rendezvous was over.

Because just like every other time that he was around this girl, he was completely confused.

He thought that she really annoyed him, but just like the other times, she got inside his head.

"Yo, Golden Boy?" She waved her hand in front of his face and Jace snapped out of his thoughts. "So? Can you take me back to town?"

"Yeah, sure thing," he nodded. He started walking back to the car and Clary pushed off the edge of the picnic table, walking alongside him, their arms brushing against each other and making Jace feel heated. As they reached his car, he thought of something and turned to her. Now that they were actually talking, he really didn't want to leave it to chance when they would see each other again. Not that it would be long, given how small the town was, they would undoubtedly bump into each other sooner or later.

He just hoped it would be sooner.

"Will I see you around the gym?" He asked.

"If you're lucky," Clary winked at him as she slid into the passenger seat of the car and shut the door.

 _Alright! Now, in regards to the story idea I brought up in the last chapter, the werewolf AU. I've decided I will go ahead with that! It won't be posted for a while, but I've written a couple of chapters to see how I feel about it. The lovely_ FrenchBenzo _and_ reppinda5o3 _have read the first chapter, and are listening to me ramble as I try to put the story together, so a big thank you to them :)_

 _Couple of highlights of the past few weeks for me—the song_ Garden _and_ Trouble _by Halsey. Shit, they're both incredible. Also, the_ Wonder Woman _trailer! How fucking badass does Gal Gadot look?! The song_ Sad Song _by We The Kings, I absolutely love it. And, oh my god, how have I never known about Tyler Posey's nose piercing?! Holy shit, it just made me fall in love even more. Oh yeah—and I'm going to_ Suicide Squad _tomorrow! I'm a little bit worried because of such mixed reviews, but I hope it's good._

 _Please leave a review, let me know what ya'll think, any recommendations for songs or fangirling about_ Wonder Woman _or Tyler Posey (or anything_ Teen Wolf _related). I'll send out a preview for a review xx_


	19. Chapter 19

_Glad you guys are enjoying the progress between our two. On with the next chapter..._

It had now been six months since she had been away from her brother and her father, and the rest of her life back in the city. Jocelyn had caught on to the fact that Clary had been having trouble sleeping, and had been solving it by having a stash of liquor bottles in her room. She had brought it up in conversation once, but Clary had instantly shut her down. Jocelyn wasn't going to start an argument about it, her daughter was an adult, but that didn't mean she had to happy in her choices.

But the truth was, if Clary didn't drink before she slept, most of the time she had nightmares. If she was put into a deep enough sleep, she would wake with a start in the middle of the night in a tangle of sheets and a cold sweat. They were dreams of her father, and what he and his men would do to her and more importantly—to her mother if they found them.

She had been trying to stop herself, not wanting to become reliant. She wasn't an idiot, she knew that what she was doing was risky, in the life she lead back in the city with the men that surrounded her father, she knew what could happen if alcohol became a crutch. So she was trying to find other ways to help herself sleep, like tiring herself by going to the gym twice a day—in the morning and then after dinner, just before she went to sleep.

Being friends with Izzy and Aline and Simon had helped as well, and over the past few weeks, that friendship had begun to extend to Alec, Helen, Magnus and strangely enough, Jace. She hadn't seen him too much, but Izzy had invited her to a couple of dinners that he had been at, and they had been a bit more comfortable with each other.

She didn't know how she felt about him.

Her first assumption had been that he was stuck up and a privileged rich boy.

And then her second and third assumption were exactly the same.

Pretty much, she had thought he was an asshole.

She still kinda thought that, but there was clearly something else there.

Clary didn't like confusing, she never did.

And that was everything that Jace was.

At least one thing hadn't changed for her. When she got herself into a situation that she couldn't understand, she turned to her painting. And of course, to Shadow and Hunter. It was a late Saturday afternoon, and she was in her room with the windows wide open so that the fumes didn't get to her head, when there was a knock at her door.

"Clary?" She turned around and jutted her chin forward in surprise when she saw Jace standing there. "Uh, your mum let me in on her way out. She said she was meeting some friends for work."

"Uh yeah, okay," Clary put down her paintbrush and moved her body so that she was standing in front of her canvas, blocking it from view. She knew that she was good, Art had been what she was majoring in when she went to University back in New York, but that didn't mean she was comfortable with just anyone looking at her work. Especially when she wasn't finished with something.

"I brought pizza," Jace said, standing fully in the doorway so that she could see his hands. She looked suspicious as her eyes flickered between the pizza and his face, but she calmed her expression before speaking.

"And what were you going to do if I was out?" Clary lifted an eyebrow.

"Eat the whole pizza by myself?" Jace shrugged and gave her a hopeful smile. Clary rolled her eyes, but she found herself walking over to her bed to grab a hoodie to pull it on over the singlet she was wearing. Jace looked as though he was about to step into her room, but came to a stop when there was a hiss at his feet. He looked down and saw Shadow sitting there, the little black cat glaring at him. "Not too friendly, are ya?" He muttered.

"She doesn't like anyone except me and sometimes mum," Clary said as she reached down to pick her cat up, and it curled naturally into her arms, looking comfortable and then completely furious at the same time when she glanced over at Jace. "Hunter is the nice one," Clary nodded down at a white ball of fluff that was still fast asleep and un-bothered by the extra presence in the room. Clary squeezed past Jace in the doorway, leading the way back into the lounge. "So, uh, since when are we friends who hang out on Saturday nights?" She asked as she tipped Shadow onto the ground and cleared off the coffee table for space for him to put down the pizza.

"Why not?" Jace shrugged as he made himself comfortable on the couch, his eyes tracking her as she moved. Clary considered it and then shrugged.

"Well, I guess I can put up with you for an hour or so," she gave him a flash of a smile. "You want a beer?" She asked, already walking toward the kitchen.

"Yeah, sounds good." Clary grabbed two beers out of the fridge and walked back into the lounge and handed one to him. She settled down on the ground next to the coffee table and picked up the first slice of pizza. "So? Do you have nothing better to do right now?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Jace smirked at her as he took a bite of pizza and then picked up his beer bottle and snapped off the lid, balancing it on the edge of the table.

"I _did_ have something better to do," Clary snorted. "I was painting, and I was very happy doing it until you interrupted me."

"You were at home alone with your two cats," Jace swallowed his mouthful of pizza and raised his eyebrows at her. "I'm not exactly an expert, but that sounds like the makings of a perfect crazy cat lady." Clary rolled her eyes at him as she opened her own bottle of beer and took a drink.

"Pretty Boy, we are absolutely not comfortable enough for you to invade my personal space and _then_ call me a crazy cat lady," she told him in a sassy tone. "Besides, I'm way too fucking hot to turn into a crazy cat lady."

"Got that damn right," Jace muttered as he took another bite of pizza. Clary paused, her eyes flickering upwards, but he wasn't looking at her, and so she took a deep breath and went back to her slice, hiding her surprised smile. "Anyway, I've got a work thing on tonight, but the food is always this really fancy, completely disgusting stuff that my dad gets imported from these weird caterers so I thought I'd eat before I go."

"Understandable," Clary jerked her head in a nod. "And pizza is your go-to food?"

"Definitely," Jace nodded.

"And I'm your go-to person?" She continued, eyes sharp as she watched his reaction. But he didn't answer without thinking, far too clever for that, and he just looked over at her, his golden eyes sparking with mischief as he winked at her without replying. She wiped the grease from the cheese off her lips with the back of her hand and then braced her arms behind her, her new position making her breasts push out and strain against the singlet she was wearing, the unzipped hoodie falling open. She didn't miss the way Jace's eyes slowed a little when he glanced up, raking over her body, before resting on his beer. She decided to let it go.

For whatever reason Jace had ended up here, she honestly didn't mind.

He had apologized for his shitty behavior to begin with, and even if he was kind of a jackass, she had no real issue with him anymore.

Plus, he was easy on the eyes.

"Are you checking me out?" Jace asked suddenly, his lush mouth curled into a smirk that made her want to lick at his lips.

"And if I am?" Clary retorted. "I know you do the same to me."

"Guilty as charged," Jace's smirk stretched into a full grin and Clary felt her heart skip a beat. Her eyebrows pulled together, trying to push away the weird tightening in her chest by focusing her eyes on something else.

"This work thing tonight...What time does it start?" She asked with a tip of her head.

"In about half an hour," Jace answered after looking down at his expensive watch. "I should actually probably be off."

"And it's on a Saturday night? That sucks for a work thing," Clary scrunched up her nose adorably. "Why do you have to go there?"

"Well, I'm the bosses son, so—"

"So you could definitely get away with being late?" She prompted him. "This is what I mean, dude. You need to loosen up. You're always so...Prompt," she spat out the word like it tasted bad on her tongue.

"I didn't realize being on time was a bad thing," Jace scoffed.

"It's not," Clary shrugged. "It just feels like you're always so tense. You're always on the go. You need to chill out. I mean, this work thing tonight—what exactly do you have to do tonight? It's a Saturday night, so I'm guessing it's some meet and greet shit, right? You and Sebastian have to stand at your daddy's side and shake a couple of hands?" She had meant for it to come out as a joke, but as soon as she mentioned Sebastian's name, Jace's face closed down.

"Something like that," he grunted. Clary breathed out through her nose.

"You guys have some serious issues," she muttered.

"I'd really rather not talk about him," Jace said, standing up and closing the pizza box.

"I'll take care of the rubbish," Clary told him, looking up at him as he moved around to the other side of the coffee table. "Don't worry about it." Jace jerked his head in a nod, but clearly just hearing his step-brothers name had been enough to put him on edge. She sighed as she got up off the ground and walked behind him to the door. He glanced over his shoulder to say goodbye when she grabbed his hand and pulled him back over the threshold. He only had time to open his mouth to ask what she was doing when her tongue was suddenly between his lips and pressed against his. It wasn't a long kiss, but when they pulled apart, the tension from his shoulders had eased. He blinked at her, scrambling for something to say.

"What; so you can just kiss me whenever but if I do it to you, I get punched in the face?" Was the best thing he could come up with. Clary let out a laugh and shook her head.

"Asshole," she rolled her eyes, but it was in a fond way. "That was just to get you to relax. Have fun sucking ass tonight with your business partners." Jace wanted to stay, and he definitely wanted to kiss her some more, but she was already giving him a gentle push toward the door. "Goodnight, Jace," she said pointedly, putting her hand on the door.

"Night, Clary," he murmured, before she shut the door in his face.

 _So me and the hubby have been on a total Disney binge the past week or so. We've gone through_ Treasure Planet, Mulan, Pocahontas, Zootopia _and_ Lion King _. Yeah, we may be in our twenties, but you're never fucking too old for Disney! My hubby's favourite Disney song is_ Circle of Life _from Lion King, and mine is_ Colours of the Wind _from Pocahontas, very closely followed by_ Two Worlds _from Tarzan. Tell me, tell me yours :)_

 _Also, I'm re-watching_ Numb3rs _right from season one. I used to absolutely love this show—it's still absolutely awesome. Charlie is adorable in the shy, nerdy way, and then Don is hot in the surly, mutter-mutter glare way. LOL._

 _Anyway! Leave a review, let me know what you think :)_

 _I'll send out a preview for all logged in reviews xx_


	20. Chapter 20

_Update, update, update! Just before heading in, quite a few of you guys have asked for my name for Facebook and Snapchat and tumblr (although I'm barely ever on there). And that's totally fine, I love meeting you guys on there and it's so much easier and talk via PM and shit. But you need to tell me your name, because if you add me and we have no mutual friends, I'm just gonna leave you chilling in the limbo section. Haha. So just make sure you're telling me your name as well :)_

"I don't know if I'm ever going to get used to having one place to go shopping," Clary murmured as they walked into the mall of the town. Isabelle laughed and slipped an arm through Clary's and tugged her forward.

"This is huge for us!" She advised with a laugh. "I remember when I was thirteen and every time we wanted to go shopping, we needed to drive about two hours away. When this was built a few years ago, it was amazing."

"I feel as though you have been completely deprived of a proper shopping experience," Clary said and then stopped. "Wait, with the clothes you wear—you can't get them all from here, right? I mean, they're gorgeous, and most of these shops...Most of them are really tacky," she cringed as she looked around. Isabelle smirked and looked down at what she was wearing; skin tight jeans and a lacy corset top that was practically painted on.

"I order a lot of my shit online," she admitted. "But not all of these places are bad. And there's some awesome op shops around." Clary shrugged. "Anyway, what were you doing when you were thirteen, hm? Something tells me you weren't sitting at home, sucking your thumb and watching _Lizzie McGuire_?"

"Hey, I absolutely loved _Lizzie McGuire_ ," Clary smirked and squeezed Isabelle's arm. "I don't know, I used to hang out a lot with my older brother and his friends. We were all pretty close," she shrugged. Isabelle glanced over at her as they started walking toward the clothing stores at the back of the store. She pursed her lips, wondering if she should say anything, because Clary was quite a private person, that much was clear in the time that she had known her.

"I didn't know that you had a brother," she commented quietly, figuring that Clary would tell her to stop if she didn't want to discuss it.

"Uh," Clary flicked her tongue out to wet her lips and then shrugged again, but her expression had tightened a little. "Yeah, older brother. Jon." She gave Isabelle a smile as she quickened the pace. "Anyway! Why don't you show me where I can get a cute dress? I feel as though I haven't brought anything new in years!" Isabelle let her change the subject, because they weren't that close friends, and she took over as hostess, leading the way around the mall.

Despite Clary's original reservations, there were some good places to shop at, and she spent most of the money she had in her wallet. After they had walked around for a few hours, they stopped at the food court, both of them getting don buri and shoving fork fulls in their mouths.

"He's three years older than me," Clary said partway through their meal. Isabelle looked up at her in confusion. "My brother? He's three years older than me." She scooped up rice and salad and then stabbed at a piece of chicken. "Most brothers don't like their little sister trailing around after them, but he always let me hang out with his friends, and he would look out for me. Kinda like you and Alec, I guess."

"Eh, we didn't get on really well when we were younger," Isabelle laughed. "Alec is super protective—"

"I've noticed that," Clary interjected with a smirk.

"Ick, I know, right?" Isabelle made a face, but there was no real malice there, only fondness in her eyes. "It used to really piss me off, especially when you're a sixteen year old trying to have fun. But we're a lot better now, and he's a lot less uptight since him and Magnus got together. I think maybe a whole lot of that 'protectiveness' was just pent up sexual tension." Clary snorted and grinned down at her food.

"So what about him and Jace, then? I mean, you say that Alec has loosened up, but Jace is still...He's still wound pretty damn tight," she observed, glancing over at Isabelle from beneath her eyelashes, hoping that her words sounded casual.

"Yeah, but then he's kind of always been like that," Isabelle shrugged. "He's kind of a perfectionist in everything that he does. His mum and dad had a really shitty relationship, and I think that's part of the reason why he doesn't really do relationships. And, I don't know," she shrugged. "Since his dad re-married Sebastian's mum a few years ago, there's always been this rivalry between the two of them. Sebastian and Jace..." Isabelle pursed her lips as she thought, tapping her fork against the bottom of her plastic food bowl. "In heaps of ways they're totally opposite. Jace needs everything to be perfect, and needs to be on time for everything, wants to be the best and even though he doesn't seem like it, when he lets people in, he will do anything for them. Sebastian is sloppy and messy, and really doesn't care about his job or, well, anyone really. But then in some ways they're really similar, like—"

"Like they can be total assholes?" Clary smirked and Isabelle grinned back at her.

"That's it," she hummed. "But at least with Jace, he has redeeming qualities."

"Well, Sebastian's good with his cock?" Clary shrugged.

"I don't need to know that," Isabelle scrunched up her nose.

"My bad," Clary didn't really look that sorry, but in her defense, Isabelle didn't look all that bothered. She finished the rest of her food and then started on the strawberry smoothie that she had brought. It was good, nice and thick and filled with actual strawberry pulp, and Isabelle watched her for a few moments with her eyes narrowed a little. "What is it?" Clary asked, not needing to look up to know that Isabelle was studying her.

"What's going on between you and Jace?" She asked abruptly.

"Me and Jace?" Clary repeated back, her fingers tightening around the cold plastic of her smoothie cup.

"Yeah," Isabelle crossed her arms and folded her legs, leaning back in her seat. "I mean, there was that awkward moment between you guys right when I first met you, when him and Kaelie were being all gross and making out in public. And then there's just been...I don't know, there's just always been this tension when you two are together. Oh, that's right!" She snapped her fingers, and gave a sarcastic smile. "And then there was that one time when he just randomly kissed you."

"Hey, I didn't ask for any of that," Clary defended herself.

"Yeah, but it still happened," Isabelle continued. "And he wouldn't just do that if there wasn't something there." Clary was quite, swirling her straw around in her smoothie as she thought.

"I don't know," she answered honestly. "The first couple of times that we met he acted as though he had a stick up his ass. I guess he's kind of grown on me though."

"Since the kiss?" Isabelle pushed.

"Well," Clary pursed her lips and shrugged one shoulder. "There's actually been...More than one kiss."

"What?!" Isabelle looked shocked at that and Clary shrugged again.

"There's been three kisses," she said. "But that's it."

"What do you that's it?" Isabelle snorted. "You could say that after one kiss, but three? That's something!"

"Look," Clary slurped up the rest of her strawberry smoothie and then pushed it to the side of the table, flattening her palms. "I don't have time for a relationship, or anything complicated right now. I feel like anything with ol' Golden Boy will be exactly that, and I'm just not interested in getting stuck in that."

"We live in a tiny town where there's nothing to do other than hang out with your friends and get it on with semi-attractive men! Have some fun!" Isabelle protested.

"I'm all about fun!" Clary shot right back at her. "Which is why I went out with Sebastian. He's fun, and he's simple. Not complicated."

"What makes you think that Jace is complicated?" Isabelle frowned, plucked eyebrows narrowing.

"Because—" Clary broke off because she knew what she was about to say. Because it's already complicated. "Because he just got out of a relationship. He was with that blonde chick, right? You said that he doesn't do relationships, but I always used to see him around with her. So that means he must have really liked her if he was with her and I'm not interested in being some kind of buffer when she does the whole psycho ex-girlfriend thing and then—"

"They weren't in a relationship," Isabelle said. "Jace definitely didn't like her. Or at least, not for her personality. And Kaelie might give the next girl a couple of dirty looks, but that's it, she's got no claim on him. So you can't use that as an excuse." Clary sighed and then frowned back at the dark haired girl.

"Wait, why are you acting as though you want me and him together? He's your cousin, isn't that kind of—I don't know, weird?"

"I think you two would be a good match," Isabelle smirked. "I mean, when I first saw the weird tension between you two, I told him to back the fuck off. He used to go after my friends in school, mainly because he went after everyone in a skirt, and when he dumped them, our friendships were always screwed. So when I saw him looking at you like you were the best ride in the amusement park, I told him that he needs to leave you alone—"

"When was this?!" Clary asked in surprise.

"Right back after the first party," Isabelle continued. "But then after getting to know you, I think you can handle yourself just fine."

"Well, thanks," Clary muttered sarcastically.

"You're welcome," Isabelle curled her painted lips into a smile. "And for whatever reason you don't want to have some fun—get over it. Give me your phone." Clary frowned but didn't say anything as she handed her phone over. Isabelle tapped a couple of times on the screen, looking down at her own phone halfway through, and then handed it back to Clary.

 _I'm bored_ had been sent to an unknown number, probably what Isabelle had gotten off her own phone.

"Who did you send this to?" Clary questioned suspiciously.

"Jace," Isabelle smirked.

"What?!" Clary snapped.

"Jace," Isabelle repeated, clearly unrepentant.

"What?! Why?! And he won't even know it's me, he doesn't have my number."

"Yes, he does," Isabelle's eyebrow lifted. "He asked for it last week, and I gave it to him." Clary rolled her eyes, acting annoyed, but she couldn't help but stare down at her phone expectantly, waiting for a reply. "Come on, you like him. As much as you don't want to say it, you like him," Isabelle insisted. Clary huffed but she didn't say anything else, because it was clear that Isabelle wasn't buying what she was selling.

And it was pretty clear when her phone buzzed in her hand and her whole body jerked as though she had got an electric shock that she was interested in the person on the other end of the number.

 _I'm at work at the moment._

Clary stared down at the phone for a few seconds, and then Isabelle's smile grew knowingly as the redhead texted back.

 _What's the point of being the bosses son if you can't leave early every now and then?_

"Not a word," Clary warned Isabelle, looking up at the smiling girl, holding up one finger warningly.

"I'm not saying anything," Isabelle sung out as Clary looked back down at her phone, waiting on another reply.

 _Okay! Now a couple of things. First things first; songs I'm addicted to at the moment._ Bubblegum Bitch _by Marina and the Diamonds. I watched a fanvid for Lydia Martin (who's a queen, btw) and I heard the song on there and I'm now completely in love. Then there is_ Closer _by Chainsmokers and Halsey,_ Gravel to Temple _by Hayley Kiyoko and_ Homeostasis _by Nostalghia._

 _The next thing is; either_ Without A Clue _or_ Feet First, Don't Fall _is going to become one of my stories that gets updated twice a month. Which one would you guys prefer?_

 _And then lastly—I'm so sorry, there's so many!—one of the new stories that I'm working on is going to be one where they're all pretty much tattooed. So my question to you guys is do you guys have any suggestions for tattoo's? I've got quite a few ideas, but I decided I'd open it up to you guys, get your ideas. We've got our usual; Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, Magnus and Alec, but then there's also Raphael and Kaelie. So let me know, and the meaning behind the tattoo or what it could possibly stand for, and I'll note it down and might include it :)_

 _That's everything!_

 _So leave a review, let me know your ideas, thoughts, suggestions, etc etc!_

 _Love you all :) xx_


	21. Chapter 21

_I've had quite a few people with requests for what they want to see in this story. I'm really,_ really _sorry, but I've actually already finished writing this. If you guys have suggestions or any particular scenes that you want, still let me know, and I can note them down for future story reference :)_

Isabelle dropped Clary off back at her house about twenty minutes after she had sent her last text off to Jace. It was just after four o'clock, and Clary wasn't too sure what kind of time frames she was looking at with Jace finishing work, but she assumed five o'clock was probably a safe bet.

She wasn't going to wait around at the mall until then.

He hadn't taken the bait at her jab about him being the bosses son, and so she was thinking that he probably wasn't going to show up. Clary dumped her bags from the days shopping on the floor in the lounge and walked into the kitchen. There was a half bottle of white wine in the fridge, and she pulled it out, taking a long sip straight from the bottle before stepping back to study the rest of the contents in the fridge. There was some left over dinner from the night before, and she was about to reach in and grab the plastic container when there was a knock at the door. Clary frowned, tightening her hold around the glass bottle as she walked back through the lounge to the entrance way.

"Who is it?" She called out as she rested her hand on the doorknob, not unlocking it straight away.

"It's Jace," came a short reply. Her eyebrows lifted in surprise and she opened the door, her head tilted to the side. Jace looked a little disconcerted, his hands shoved into his pockets.

"So you skived off work early, aye?" She teased him lightly as she took a pointedly large sip from the wine bottle which he glanced at. "Thought you were meant to be this perfect son?" Jace looked a little pained at that and Clary huffed and rolled her eyes. "Are you serious? You really need to chill out."

"So you keep saying," Jace muttered. "Anyway, you said you were bored? You wanna go for a drive?" Clary didn't correct him in saying that it was Isabelle who had sent the original text. She just shrugged and then nodded, grabbing her keys from the hook by the door and locking it behind her, leaving the bottle of wine on the floor beside the door and hoping that her mum didn't kick it over when she came home. Maybe there was a little bit of a smile on her face as Clary ducked her head and followed after him. Jace looked as though he was going to open the door for her, but she quickened her step so that she was right behind him and reaching for the handle about the same time that he was so that he was forced to step aside. "You don't make shit easy, do you?"

"I wasn't aware that I ever gave off the impression I was the kind of girl who needed doors to be opened for me?" Clary quirked an eyebrow at him. Jace let out a short laugh and then continued walking around to his side of the Corvette. Clary stretched out her legs, already feeling the wine that she had thrown back settling comfortably around her brain and slid her belt on. She waited until they pulled away from the curb until she looked over at him. He was wearing a suit, a fitted one that looked damn good on him, but on the way over he had loosened his tie and unbuttoned the top button of the white cotton button down shirt. "You look hot," she stated, not disguising the interest in her eyes.

"You really don't have much of a filter, do you?" Jace snorted, although she saw the way he straightened his back and squared his shoulders as though preening a little at her praise.

"Where's the fun in that?" Clary shot back at him.

"You're just completely unlike girls I'm used to—except for Izzy," he conceded quickly as he thought about it. "You're a bit like Izzy."

"Well that's good then," Clary snorted. "Because she's one of the only girls around here that doesn't make me want to puke. Except Aline and Helen, of course. They're cool too."

"Didn't know you knew that many other girls?" Jace rolled his eyes over to her as he tightened his hand around the wheel of the car, his foot pressing down harder on the accelerator to increase their speed as they reached the outskirts of towns. "You don't really seem like the social butterfly type."

"Hey, I like people well enough!" Clary protested.

"Could have fooled me," Jace smirked over at her and Clary laughed.

"Well, I like _selective_ people," she clarified. Jace grinned and Clary's smile widened. She reached over and hook her finger underneath the silk of his tie. She felt him stiffen as her knuckles brushed against the skin of his collarbone as tugged the knot loose. She pulled it over his head and threw it into the backseat of the car and then undone another two buttons, purposefully letting her fingernail scratch lightly at the skin underneath before pulling her hand back and letting it rest on her thigh. She certainly hadn't missed the way he reacted to her touching him, and Jace glanced over at her a couple of times before narrowing his eyes and focusing on the road. "So where are we going?" Clary asked after a few minutes.

"You used to live in the city, right?" Jace asked and Clary's eyebrows pulled together.

"Who told you that?"

"Well, it's not that hard to gather, from things you've said, the way you act and dress and shit," he shrugged. "Plus, Izzy might have mentioned it."

"You been asking about me, Jace?" Clary teased him, reaching over to poke him in the side with her finger. Jace let out a huff as he tried to angle his body away from her prodding. "Like the other week when you got my number from Izzy?" Jace's cheeks reddened just a little bit and he managed a one shouldered shrug. "You know you could've just asked me yourself."

"Yeah, well, I was getting there," Jace mumbled, looking a little embarrassed. Clary didn't say anything else, but the silence was comfortable. It was weird to think that other than probably Simon and Aline, Jace was the person she felt most relaxed around in this town. They most definitely hadn't started out on the right foot, or the second or third time around, but somehow they had managed to make it work, and she had to admit that she was glad for that. His slightly prickly demeanor and sarcastic manner worked in well with her own personality, and he was easy on the eyes as well.

"Anyway," she continued. "That doesn't tell me where we're going."

"Oh right," Jace cleared his throat, rolling his shoulders as he relieved the tension there. "Well, you used to live in a city, right? So you've probably never seen a proper sunset?"

"Uh, we have sunsets in New York, you know," Clary rolled her eyes.

"You were in New York?" Jace didn't sound all that surprised, but Clary felt her body stiffen as she realized she had just said where she was from. It was something that the Suits had warned them not to do, and now she had just easily blurted it out after being so careful for the past few months.

"Yeah, but anyway, you're showing me a sunset?" Clary continued quickly, hoping that he wouldn't ask any questions. "That sounds pretty romantic, Blondie." Jace rolled his eyes but didn't comment. They were quite far out of the town now, and he was indicating to turn down a gravel driveway that lead up a grassy hill. Clary frowned out the window, tilting her head upward as they came to a stop at the top of the hill and there was a big concrete structure next to the Corvette. "So..." he turned off the engine and Clary frowned in confusion over at him. "This is...Nice?" She sounded a little disappointed, her button nose scrunching up a little, and Jace couldn't help but give her a small, genuine smile.

"We're going up there," he said, pointing a finger at the solid concrete building. Clary frowned, undoing her buckle and pushing open her door so that she could look up.

"Is it a...Water tower?" She asked, needing to crane her neck all the way back so that she could see the top.

"Yup," Jace nodded with a grin. "An old water tower, so no one really comes out here anymore. But it's still kept in good condition, so it's safe." Jace shrugged out of his suit jacket and threw it haphazardly into the backseat before leading the way around the water tower to where there was a ladder.

"You want me to climb?" Clary asked in surprise as they stopped on either side of the ladder.

"It's safe," Jace repeated. "I promise." Clary considered it for a moment before shrugging and grinning, and beginning to climb. Jace waited a couple of seconds, sucking his lower lip into his mouth as her ass swung in front of his face, encased in black leather shorts, before she paused and then looked over her shoulder, back down at him.

"You okay down there, pal?" She teased him and Jace felt himself blushing like a schoolboy all over again at getting caught at staring.

"Y-yeah," Jace cleared his throat and began to climb up after her. When they were about halfway up, ten feet or so high, there was a gust of wind and Clary paused.

"You're absolutely certain about this being safe, right?" She called down to him, and he heard a twinge of nervousness in her voice. He understood it, because they were climbing a water tower that was about twenty feet high, but he was a little surprised that she was letting him hear her uncertainty.

"Don't worry, Clary," he called back to her. "I wouldn't bring you here if this wasn't safe, because I'm pretty sure your mum would kill me if you ended up breaking your neck because of me, and she's too nice to end up in prison." There was a snort from Clary as she resumed climbing.

"Don't worry," Clary replied. "I'm pretty sure mum could handle herself just fine in prison." Jace raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything about how weird the comment was as they kept climbing. They reached the top of the ladder and Clary got to her feet as they reached the flat. It was only wide enough for them to walk one at a time, so Clary waited for Jace to stand up next to her so that she could follow him. He walked halfway around so that they could face the direction that the sun was beginning to sink in the sky. It was almost five, so they still had about an hour before the sun would be gone, but Jace didn't look as though he was in any hurry.

"Careful," Jace said, holding up a hand to her as he settled back down, legs sliding underneath the bottom rail of fencing that ran around the metal walkway. Clary could have sat down perfectly fine by herself, but she took his hand, and sat down next to him, their knees bumping together.

They were silent for a long time, probably almost twenty minutes, watching as the sunk moved lower and lower in the sky, oranges and rich reds streaking the blue. There were barely any clouds and there was the faintest breeze in the sky. This was the one place in the town that Jace felt completely relaxed in, and he had never really brought anyone out here with him, other than Alec and sometimes Isabelle. It was a popular make out spot for a lot of people, but he in particular had never come out here with anyone else. But for some reason, he hadn't thought twice about bringing Clary out here.

That was all a part of what made her so...Complicated.

"Okay, so maybe you were right," Clary murmured, keeping her voice so quiet it was barely loud enough for him to hear, it was as though she didn't want to disrupt the peace. "We don't have sunsets like this in New York." Jace turned to smile at her, and was surprised when he felt her fingers brushing against his, linking them together. Jace felt the warmth from her hand spread up his arm and through his body like a rapid infection, and he had to swallow hard. He was still looking at her, waiting for that flicker in her eye, that tilt in her eye, anything to give him the indication that she was thinking and feeling the same thing that he was.

Her eyes darted down to his mouth, resting there for a second before dragging back up to his eyes, and that was all he needed before he leaned in.

Their first two kisses had been rushed and a little sloppy, and the third kiss had been pretty chaste. This kiss, though...It was slow, and it sent sparks skittering across Clary's skin. Jace's fingers tightened around hers, the other hand moving to rest against the soft curve of her neck, and he felt his whole body react to the way that her lips moved against his. His tongue pressed softly against her lips, and she parted them for him, letting him inside her mouth. She tasted sweet, and felt incredible, and she arched her body into his, soft against him, fitting like she was made to dissolve into him.

The whole thing?

It was kind of perfect.

 _I'm currently on another_ Veronica Mars _binge. I think I must go on one of these at least twice a year—re-watch all the seasons over again and the movie. Veronica is a total BAMF, Logan and Weevil are amazing, and Mac and Wallace are fucking awesome as well. It's soooooo fucking good!_

 _My song recommendations this time are_ Waves _by Kris Allen,_ Heathens _by Twenty One Pilots and_ Waiting Game _and_ Beggin' For Thread _by Banks. Banks is seriously amazing, a complete an utter babe and her songs are sensual as fuck._

 _Anyway! Let me know what you guys think about Veronica Mars and also any new song recommendations! And this time around I've got previews set up for the next chapter for anyone who leaves a logged in review :) xxx_


	22. Chapter 22

_I hope everyone enjoys this chapter...Haha :*_

It was all a little messy from that point on.

They kissed for a while at the top of the water tower, Jace's fingers brushing over her neck and shoulder, before sliding down her arm and squeezing lightly. They crawled backwards from the edge, so that their backs were pressed up against the concrete. After a few minutes, Jace awkwardly at her elbow, testing the waters to see if she was thinking along the same lines as him without wanting to push her too far. But she had complied, letting him shift her body so that she was sitting on his lap, her legs on either side of his thighs. It didn't take long for him to hard and hot, pressing against her groin, and it seemed to be an undecided decision for them to breathlessly part and start down the ladder.

In the car, there was so much tension in the air it was like one spark would send them both up in flames. Jace's whole body felt electrified as he shifted gears of the car, his fingers straying close to her thigh at one point but not actually touching her. They got into town and Jace hesitated for a moment when he came to road that he could either take toward her place, or continue on to go to his place.

He accelerated, and went forward, going straight past her street.

Clary didn't say anything to indicate she wanted to go home.

His breath caught in his chest, not quite believing this was happening.

When they got to his place, he turned off the engine and stepped out of the car quickly, not wanting to loose his nerve. Clary followed after him, and Jace was a little embarrassed that his hands shook a little as he slid the key into the lock and then pushed open the door. She licked her lips behind him, heat pooled in her stomach as she kicked off her shoes and stepped inside, purposefully not walking too far from him, waiting for him to shut the front door behind them.

"Did you want to go down to the bedroom?" Jace asked, his voice husky and quiet as their arms brushed together. Clary turned so that she was facing him head on, and one of her hands reached out to loop a finger into one of his front pockets, tugging slightly.

"I'm not here as your girlfriend, or as a date, Jace. You don't need to impress me with fancy silk sheets or being all nice and sweet," Clary looked up at him through her thick eyelashes, green eyes sultry and glowing. "I'm not here for you to be gentle with." Jace swallowed hard, his Adams apple bobbing up and down, before he lunged forward, his mouth attacking hers, and his arms going around her waist, jerking her petite body upwards. Her tongue tasted so good as it rolled against his, and he traced her teeth and the roof of her mouth, licking at anything he could get access to. Suddenly he thought of something, and pulled away from her.

"Wait, wait," he panted, waiting for her to open her eyes, a questioning look in the hazy orbs. "You're not still sleeping with Seb, are you? It's just, I couldn't—"

"No, Jace," Clary gave him a small smile before grabbing his collar. "I'm not," she pulled him back into her. He was glad that he worked out regularly, it made it so much easier to slam her up against the wall, her shoulder blades jarring and she let out a squeak from the back of her throat, but the way that she just kissed him harder showed that she liked it. Her legs locked at the base of his spine and she was rolling her hips against the hardness of his abdominal muscles, practically humping his perfect torso. Jace growled against her tongue as he buried it in her mouth, tasting everything that she had to give him, his arms banded tight around her body.

"Fuck, you taste good," Jace mumbled as he moved away from the wall, his strong legs easily carrying her weight through the first door of the hall. They came into the kitchen and he put her down on the bench top, leaving his hands free to roam the rest of her body. He tugged at her shirt, and she let him pull it over her head, tossing it over his shoulder. She worked at his own buttons, jerking his shirt out from the band of his pants where it was tucked in, and Jace sucked in a sharp breath as her nails raked against his abs. His cock was creating an obvious tent in his pressed pants and she palmed it through the material, her free hand going around his neck and pulling him back in for a sloppy kiss. Jace grunted as he thrust against her hand, undoing her bra and letting the soft cups full forward before cupping her breasts.

"Shit," Clary sighed, her whole body body giving an involuntary shiver as his thumbs brushed over her nipples ever so softly. The touch was a stark contrast to how roughly he had been holding her hips, and it was like that was what made her body react. He plucked at her nipples, still moving against her hand, and even though her breathing was labored and she was clearly getting lost in what he was doing, she managed to fumble open his button and zipper, and then she was pulling out his cock.

"Fuck," Jace's body jerked as they were suddenly skin on skin, and Clary felt the pre-cum coat her palm. His touch faltered as she twisted her hand, his cock hot and throbbing, her thumb pressing against the leaking slit and letting it catch on the skin at the lip, making him shudder. He dropped his head backwards, letting out a moan, before she made an impatient noise and wiggled her body a little, trying to get his attention.

"This isn't all about you, pal," her voice had a teasing lilt to it that made Jace's lips turn upwards in a part smile. He squeezed one of her tits, and then focused on undoing her shorts, Clary lifting up her ass so that he could pull them off, along with her underwear, and then the heady scent of her arousal flooded his senses. He took a step back, taking a moment to appreciate her body, which seemed completely confident in, not trying to cross her arms over her chest or cover herself up. She was muscular but still with all the right curves, and her skin was flawless and tanned. "Like what you see?" She asked, reaching out to touch her fingernails against his biceps.

"I'm pretty sure you know the answer to that," Jace smirked at her, his cock giving an involuntary twitch as she spread her legs on the count, her pussy glistening up at him, showing how turned on she was. Jace reached down for his pants, pulling his wallet out of the back pocket and grabbing the condom that he kept there. He slid it on with practiced eased and then stood in front of Clary. She looked down at his cock, and then back up at him, her chest flushed and her breathing heavy. Her tongue resting on her lower lip and her pupils dilated and Jace reached out to touch her lip, her tongue wrapping around his thumb and pulling it into her mouth. His cock clenched again, his balls pulled up tight as she sucked on his digit, before he gripped her thigh with his other hand and pulled her to the edge of the kitchen bench. When he sunk inside her wet heat, he let out a groan, his forehead falling to nuzzle into the curve of her neck and shoulder.

"Come on," Clary panted, her whole body shuddering around him as she gripped his shoulders, rolling her hips forward to meet Jace's thrusts. His thumb was still between her lips, and she was sucking at it, her teeth scraping over the pad, and it made his muscles tighten even more. The hand on her hip was pressing so hard against her skin that Jace wondered if there were going to be bruises the next day, and that made him push into her harder, faster, the idea of her being marked by him sending a whole new flare of lust through him. Their bodies became slick with sweat as they ground against each other, and Jace shifted his hold on her hip, down to her ass and changing the angle, his pubic bone stimulating her clit. Their movements became out of sync and sloppy, and his hand fell away from her mouth, gripping her hair and pulling hard. "Shit," the sigh choked out of Clary's throat showed just how much she liked that.

"You there, Clary?" Jace growled against her throat. "I can feel how tight you are around my cock," he bit down hard at her throat, sucking until there was a red mark. "I can feel how wet you are," Clary's breathing was uneven, her fingers digging in so deep to his shoulder that there purple crescent marks, the words rasping in her ear making her body shake. "Come on, baby..." he thrust in particularly hard and she let out a squeak, practically clinging to his body. "Come for me." It was like that was all it took, because he felt a flood rush around him, dripping onto his trimmed pubic hair and down to his sac. That was enough to send Jace over the edge with her.

He told her where the bathroom was, and she walked a little gingerly down the hallway, coming out once she had cleaned herself off. Jace took care of in the en suite for his bedroom, tugging off the condom and tying it off, tossing it into the bin in the corner of the room. As he washed his hands, he looked at his reflection in the mirror. His lips were swollen, hair was messy, and there were red scratches mainly on his shoulders but also on his arms and chest. When he came back out to the lounge, after changing into a clean pair of briefs and sweatpants, he felt his heart do a weird stutter when he saw Clary pouring herself a glass of water, wearing her underwear and his button down his shirt.

"Did you want to stay for dinner?" He asked before he could think twice. Clary faltered, and then tapped her fingers against the glass.

"Do you cook?" She questioned.

"I'm pretty good at it," Jace wasn't exactly modest about it, and Clary snorted, before nodding her head.

"O-okay," she agreed hesitantly before biting down on her lower lip. "But this—this isn't serious. You know that, right?" Jace nodded, but his expression hardened as he hid his face by opening up the fridge, digging around the vegetable drawer. "You just got out of your...Your thing with Kaelie, and I'm not looking for any type of relationship."

"So what are you calling this then?" Jace asked, hoping that his voice remained neutral as he pulled out capsicum, broccoli and red onion.

"It can be a one off thing, if you want," Clary looked over at him carefully. "Or it can be a bit more regular than that...Just, I don't want any kind of complicated." Jace lined up the yellow capsicum on the chopping board and sliced a knife through the tender vegetable.

"For a girl who feels and tastes as good as you, who's kickass in boxing gloves and wanted to be a Disney Princess when she grew up? I'm going to find it hard not to get complicated," he meant his voice to come out light, like a joke, but with the way her green eyes were boring into him, he was pretty sure she could see right through it. He hadn't meant to get into this kind of conversation right now, he wasn't ready for this right now. "Anyway, uh," he cleared his throat. "You want to grab the meat out of the fridge? Bottom shelf." Clary conceded, grabbing it out and pushing it across the bench as she sipped from her glass.

She was quiet as he cooked dinner, jumping up onto the bench next to where he was getting everything ready, swinging her legs and bumping her heels against the cupboards beneath. Her hair was a fiery mess around porcelain face and every now and then, she would reach across to snatch up some of the sliced vegetables and pop them in her mouth. It was a comfortable silence that had fallen over them, something that Jace only felt when he was around Alec and Isabelle, and it was yet another reason he just knew it was already complicated on his side of things.

And despite what she was saying, there was something in those big eyes of hers that told him it was possibly complicated on her side of things as well.

"This is good," Clary mumbled through a mouthful of food and Jace snorted.

"Your table manners are atrocious," Jace rolled his eyes at her and she just shrugged as she stabbed her fork into the bowl. "So, New York, right?" Clary paused for a split second before nodding her head once. "What, you don't want to talk about it?" He frowned at her hesitation. "I've been to New York a couple of times, and it's amazing. I haven't met anyone who doesn't want to talk about."

"It's more that I don't want to talk about the things _in_ New York," Clary said quietly, clearly not keen on the subject. "There's people that I left behind."

"Like the two guys in that photo you have in your bag?" Jace asked, keeping his head ducked so that he didn't seem too interested, even though his ears were strained for an answer.

"What photo?" Clary snapped, her eyes narrowed, her hand freezing. Jace looked back up from his bowl at her change in tone.

"There's that one you have in your bag," he was a little quieter this time. "When you dropped your bag at that bar? And I brought everything back to you? Some of the stuff fell out—"

"You were snooping in my stuff?!" Clary's eyes flashed.

"It fell out!" Jace protested, his own voice raising to match hers as an automatic reaction. He never was good at keeping his cool. "I wasn't fucking looking for it!" Clary took in a deep breath through her nose, pursing her lips together, and Jace did the same thing. "I get if you don't want to talk about it, I was just asking." She pushed her food around her bowl, staring down at the fried vegetables and beef.

"This is why I'm not looking for a relationship, Jace," she said quietly. "I'm not good at sharing stuff." Jace watched her for a minute, before quietly going back to his dinner.

 _So? You guys like it? Let me know, a couple of words make all the difference to someone who's been slaving over a keyboard *puppy dog eyes*._

 _I'll send out a preview to anyone logged in who leaves a review!_

 _OMG—I went and saw Ellie Goulding in concert last weekend. It's the second time I've seen her live, and she was still just as amazing! My recommended song this week is_ Silhouette _by Aquilo. It's absolutely gorgeous. And then this weekend I'm going to see_ Deepwater Horizon _! It's had great reviews, so I'm pretty excited, plus I get to see Dylan O'Brien on the big screen, which is always a massive plus. I'll undoubtedly be doing a happy dance on my way to the cinema. Haha._

 _Also, in my profile I've put up a list of the new stories that I'm working on and a brief description about them. Check it out and let me know what you guys think :) Always happy to discuss them :) xx_


	23. Chapter 23

_We've got an update! Sorry about any mistakes._

"So, who's the guy?" Jocelyn asked, looking over the rim of her coffee cup, lifting her eyebrows as she looked at her daughter across the breakfast table.

"What do you mean?" Clary mumbled as she shoved her toast into her mouth.

"You've got a little...Something going on there," Jocelyn waved her hand toward her neck and Clary blushed a little as she realized that her mother was referring to a hickey. "Is that the boy who you had a date with a few weeks ago?"

"No," Clary scrunched up her nose and shook her head. "He's kind of a dick."

"Then who is it?" Jocelyn tilted her head to the side. Clary thought about it for a moment before picking up her own coffee cup and taking a sip.

"Jace," she mumbled through the hot liquid.

"Jace?!" Jocelyn grinned in surprise. "Oh, that's nice! I really like him! I thought that you were going to keep him at arms length, with the way you acted around him." Clary shrugged, not really sure what to say. "But he likes you, that much is clear. I've seen him when he's around you, his eyes never leave you."

"When have you seen us together?" Clary frowned.

"Well, he's friends with Isabelle and Simon, isn't he? Because I've seen him in the car when they have picked you up, or when you've had them over here for dinner," Jocelyn replied. "And then when I've come home from work and they've all been over here." Shadow jumped up onto Clary's lap and she stroked her fingers through the cats black fur absently. "And I like him, he had no problem helping out when my car broke down, so that was sweet of him. A bit of an attitude and an ego on him, but I'm pretty sure you can handle that."

"We're not a thing, mum," Clary said quietly as Shadow put her paws on Clary's chest and nuzzled against her chin. "It's just a casual thing." Jocelyn pursed her lips and ran her finger up and down the side of the warm porcelain. The two red heads fell quiet, the only noise in the room coming from Shadow's purring.

"It doesn't have to be, you know?" Jocelyn murmured. "You've got friends here, and I know our jobs here aren't glamorous, but it's something. We could build a life here." Clary's eyebrows pulled together. "We could be happy here, baby. I think I'm already partway there, if only we didn't have all this shit with your father hanging over our heads."

"So...When this is all over, after the trial, you don't want to go back to New York? You don't want to go home? You want to stay _here_?" She asked in confusion. Jocelyn licked her lips and took in a deep breath.

"I'm not sure," she admitted. "I love the city, I've spent my whole life there—you know that. But after everything that happened there...I don't know if I'll ever be properly comfortable there again. And I mean, all the friends that I had there...They were all part of this life that I had with your father. I won't have anything to do with them once this is all over." Jocelyn cleared her throat and shrugged. "Maybe I'm really starting to like it here." Clary hadn't really had time to think about what was going to happen after all of this, only what was leading up to the trial itself. "What do you think?" Jocelyn asked quietly and Clary didn't answer for a while, just patting Shadow.

"I don't know," she said. "I honestly don't know."

"Maybe you should give it some thought, yeah?" Jocelyn reached across and squeezed Clary's forearm. "Just something to think about." Clary gave her mum a tight lipped smile and nodded her head. Jocelyn got up from the table, picking up their dishes and taking them to the sink, beginning to scrub them down. Clary didn't want to think about this right now, thinking about New York and her father and her brother never lead her anywhere good. She had only just started to sleep a little better in the past week or so, and that was a lot to do with Izzy and Simon and Aline and probably Jace, even though she wasn't particularly keen on admitting that. So she took in a deep breath to try and clear her head.

"This got anything to do with the Suit?" Clary asked with a raise of her eyebrows. "You know, with the way you two look at each other, I would think that you would be keen to get back there, since it's closer to him."

"Nothing can happen between me and Luke," Jocelyn replied, her voice a little muffled.

"Nothing can happen between you and Luke _at the moment_ ," Clary corrected her. "But once this is all over, and the trials done, there could be something there." Jocelyn pursed her lips and shrugged. "Come on, mum. You've got good instincts. Trust them."

"Isn't that the sort of shit that I should be telling you? You sound like a mum," Jocelyn snorted.

"Yeah, whatever," Clary rolled her eyes.

"And besides," Jocelyn made a face. "Look where my 'good instincts' got me with your father."

"Maybe you were just ignoring your good instincts," Clary reasoned. "Because getting us out of there was the best thing you've done." She gave her mum a comforting smile and Jocelyn gave her a smile back, although her eyes lowered and there was a slightly guilty look on her face. Clary knew that her mother still felt bad about keeping them in the city with her father and the gang for as long as she did.

"Anyway, uh, I think you need to keep an eye on Hunter," Jocelyn nodded over to where the white cat was curled up on a chair in the corner of the room. "He's been acting a little off lately, and I don't think he ate very much the past couple of days. He's sort of just been lying down, not really running around with Shadow." Clary frowned, lifting Shadow off her lap and putting her on the ground. Shadow gave a discontented meow before walking off toward the lounge, and Clary walked over to where Hunter was. She made a clicking noise in her mouth, and Hunter's ears twitched but he didn't move. Usually, he would look at her, his big eyes all alert, and let out a meow.

"Baby?" Clary stroked a few fingers along the cats head, and it finally looked up at her. "Aw, what's wrong, sweetie?" Hunter let out a half meow and then dropped his head back into the curl of his body. Clary frowned and looked over at her mum. "I'll see what he's like, might need to take him to the vets."

* * *

Neither her or Jace were particularly good with the whole 'talking' side of things. That much was already apparent by the rocky way their friendship had started off, and neither of them had much practice in the way of apologizing either. The one time out by lake definitely seemed as though it was just that—a one off.

A week went by and the only interaction they had was when Isabelle got everyone to come over to her place for dinner. They sat on opposite sides of the table, avoiding eye contact until Jace made up some excuse to leave early. A few nights later, Jace had picked her up from work when she was doing the late night shift, and they had made out in the front seat of his car, grinding against each other. Jace felt painfully hard against the cradle of her legs, but he hadn't pushed her for anything else. She had reached into his pants and jerked him off until he came, sticky and ropey over her fingers, and he fingered her until she finished as well. The car smelt a little funky, a mixture of the fancy, clean smell of the leather seats, the oily smell of Clary's diner clothes and the thick, heady smell of both of their orgasms.

There had been some phone calls, breathy and filled with moans as they got themselves off. It had been almost two weeks since they had actually slept together, and there had been a couple of dinners with the group, and a night with drinks, and there had been some lingering glances and soft touches. And then there was the pizza nights, when Jocelyn was out with friends at work, and they would watch TV and share bottles of beer, and it was weirdly comfortable. They didn't even kiss on those nights, except maybe just before he left, and the strange thing was, Clary didn't know if she preferred those nights, or the times they were actually having sex.

Her and Jace hadn't slept together again, it seemed as though they had come to some non-verbal agreement that it was more than a one off thing. What was strange, was that Jace seemed perfectly content with whatever it was they had going on.

Clary was confused, and she hated it.

She had never been in a relationship. There had been some long weeks with particular boys as she was growing up, and one of Jon's friends, Bat Velasquez, who worked as a DJ at a popular club in the city, who she went back to a few times. He wasn't part of the gang life that Jon and the rest of her family were involved in, and even though him and Jon were friends, he didn't like the way they all dealt with things. She couldn't blame him when he had said that it wouldn't work out between them. And it wasn't as though she really liked him, although he was the first guy she had actually felt safe and comfortable around.

One of the reasons why she didn't want to start some cookie-cutter relationship was she didn't know how long she was going to be around here. That was also one of the reasons why she hadn't wanted to get too close to Simon and Izzy and Aline, because she didn't want to make close friends and then leave them behind when she goes back to the city, and never see them again. But friendship was one thing. She needed them to keep her sane. A relationship was different.

Another one of the reasons was what she had told Jace, she hadn't been lying. It was because she knew that in relationships, or at least healthy ones, you were meant to open up about things. You were meant to let people in. Tell them your secrets. That wasn't something that came easy with Clary, and it definitely wasn't something that she should be doing now.

Isabelle knew that there was something else going on between them. Obviously, Clary had told her about the kisses, and then Isabelle had taken her phone and tried to get them together, but Clary had never told her what had happened. Isabelle had asked, and Clary assumed that she would have asked Jace as well, but it didn't seem as though he had said anything. But there was a knowing look in the dark haired girls eyes.

"Hey, Iz?" Clary was laying on her bed, staring up at the ceiling, the faint smell of paint and her perfume creating a comforting atmosphere, along with Hunter, who was curled up at her side, a warm, furry lump.

"Clary! Hey! What's up?" Isabelle answered her phone.

"Hey, I wanted to ask you something," Clary winced at her tact, but not really one for beating around the bush. Isabelle laughed.

"Yeah, sure," she replied.

"Jace..." Clary scraped her incisors over her lip. "Has he ever actually gone out with someone? Like properly? Not what him and Kaelie had?" Isabelle took a moment, and Clary knew that she was bouncing between asking why she was curious and actually answering the question.

"Nah," Isabelle finally answered. "He never really...Well, you know how you go out with someone because you actually like being around them? Not just sex, but actually friends with them? He didn't have that with anyone." There was quiet for a few beats before Isabelle spoke again. "I've seen the two of you together, though, and I've heard him talk about you. He likes you, Clary. So if you're asking me this because you like him to, then...Then I reckon the two of you would be good together."

"Thanks, Iz," Clary muttered before pulling her phone away from her ear and quickly ending the call before Isabelle asked any more questions. "Shit," she sighed, closing her eyes back.

 _I wanted to say a big thank you to all you beautiful reviewers. Seriously. I love writing, and the support I get from you guys encourages that love. You're the reason I write so much and so often, and am willing to try new ideas and things like that, so a massive thank you to all you guys :)_

 _Also, I wanted to say that I've loved the support your guys have had toward my new stories. If you haven't already had a look at the short synopsis, they are up on my profile. Your feedback in reviews and in the private messages have been awesome, it's great to talk about them with you guys! If you guys have any requests or anything specific you guys want to see, let me know, and I'll see if it's something that I can work in._

 _Now! Guess what? I've been married two years. What. The Fuck? I feel way to young for that. LOL. But yeah, it's our anniversary next week. So that's pretty awesome :)_

 _Other awesome things are; the TV show_ Designated Survivor _. I've been in love with Keifer Sutherland since_ 24 _, and Maggie Q is in it, and she's fucking badass, although maybe not quite as badass as in_ Nikita _. The song_ I Hate You, I Love You _by Gnash featuring Olivia O'Brien. OMG. I'm addicted. And I've been blasting the cover of_ Lean On _by Openside every time I'm in my car. I heard it live and had to download it as soon as I got home. It is FUCKING AMAZING, as you would know if we're friends on snapchat because I've sent out several of me singing along. Hahahaha._

 _As usual, leave a review, let me know what you think, recommend songs or TV shows or other fics for me to check out. A couple of nice words will go a long way with the shitty week I've had :( I'll send out a preview of the next chapter for anyone logged in :) xx_


	24. Chapter 24

_And here's the next chapter, pretty people!_

"Ten minutes to go," Clary sung out as she finished hooking up the new soda bag to the machine.

"Shut up," Aline rolled her eyes at the red head.

"Hey, I've been on since five this morning. _Why_ do we even open at that time?" Clary made a face.

"Because other people start work at that time," Aline shot back with a smirk. "Anyway, thanks for covering my shift. I promise you can have your normal eight til four shift back tomorrow." Clary just rolled her eyes and then looked up from where she was still crouched on the ground, next to where the soda pumps were, the empty bag in her hand. Aline pursed her lips and glanced to the side before looking back at Clary.

"What?" She asked.

"What _what_?" Aline retorted, trying to keep a straight face.

"You wanna say something, I can tell," Clary replied, arching an eyebrow. "What is it?" Aline huffed a little through her nose and crossed her arms over her chest.

"What's going on with you and Jace?" She finally asked. Clary made a face and looked away, getting up from the ground. "C'mon, Clary! We all know something is going on, we just can't figure out what. Pretty sure Iz knows, but—"

"What do you mean ' _we_ '?" Clary interrupted.

"Like me, Simon, Alec, Magnus—"

"Geez, you guys talk about me just to keep yourself entertained?" Her voice came out a little sharper than she had intended. She completely understood that it was normal to talk about each other, especially when a group of people had been friends for so long. When something changed, someone new came into the group and the dynamic shifted, of course they were going to be curious about it. Aline had a little bit of a hurt on her face and Clary felt bad. "We're just fooling around, ya know?" She tried to soften her voice. "It's nothing serious."

"Are you sure about that?" Aline asked quietly.

"People seem to keep thinking that there's more," Clary gave a one shouldered shrug. "Look, I don't know, okay?" That was the first time she hadn't flat out refused that there was more, and that felt right, because it was the truth.

She really didn't _know_ what was going on with her and Jace.

They had only slept together once, technically—if they weren't counting the fooling around, they had kissed a bunch of times, they sometimes had dinner together, and he had given her a Disney movie and a stupid plastic tiara that was sitting like a trophy on the drawers beside her bed.

She had no idea what was going on.

"Uh, it's pretty quiet. You can head off now, if you want," Aline seemed to see the confusion written all over her face.

"Thanks, Aline," Clary gave her a short smile and reached out to squeeze her shoulder. She dumped the empty soda bag in the bin and untied the apron from around her waist and hung it over the hook next to the other spare ones and then walked into the staff room. She picked up her bag and fished out the keys from the bottom of the bag before walking out of the diner. She pulled a pack of gum out of her pocket, unwrapping a piece and putting it between her teeth and ducking her head to shove the gum back inside. She reached her car and was about to unlock the door when she felt someone quickly walking up behind her. She spun around, her hands automatically going up in a defensive position and there was a laugh.

"Shit, girl!" Jace laughed as he dodged her hands, reaching one hand up and covering one of her fists with his own.

"God, Jace," Clary growled at him. "Give a girl a little warning." Jace shrugged. Clary took in a deep breath to calm her and then frowned.

"Wait, what are you doing here? It's only two. Shouldn't you be at work like a good little boy?" Her voice had a teasing lilt to it.

"I took the afternoon off." It was adorable how proud he sounded with that statement, and Clary had to bite back a grin. "Anyway, I have a plan."

"Oh, do ya?" She lifted her eyebrows.

"I do," Jace nodded.

"And what's that?"

"You're going to have to come to my place to find out," he wiggled his eyebrows at her.

"Said every guy _ever_ ," Clary shot back at him, and he let out another laugh.

"Go home and get changed or whatever, and then come over to my place," Jace leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the mouth before turning around and walking back over to his car, glancing back over his shoulder to give her one last smile before sliding in. Clary waited and watched as he went, and then when she got into the front seat of her car, her fingers went to rest on her mouth.

It was things like that that made everything confusing.

The slight brush of lips.

It wasn't an intense kiss that was to lead to something more, it was just a show of affection, something that actual couples did.

Clary tried to ignore the mess in her head as she drove home. She pinned her hair on top of her head so that she didn't get it wet as she stepped into the shower, foaming up her citrus body wash and scrubbing it over herself, sluicing away the away the grease and sweat from her shift at the diner. She changed into a pair of sweatpants and a baggy Halsey singlet, not bothering with anything fancy or any make up because she told herself that she wasn't trying to impress anyone. Shadow was meowing and twining her lithe body around her ankles and Clary reached down to pick her up, carrying her into the kitchen. She opened the back door and called out for Hunter, thinking that it was strange that they weren't both together.

"Hunter?!" She called out, and Shadow meowed again, wanting attention. "Eh, he'll come when he's hungry, won't he, baby?" She put Shadow on the ground as she walked back into the kitchen so that she could grab the bag of biscuits and began pouring it into the two bowls. As she straightened up, she noticed a piece of paper held with a magnet to the fridge.

 _Taken Hunter into the vet. They wanted to keep him overnight for observation. He'll be fine, don't worry. Mum xx_

Why her mother chose to leave notes rather than texting her, Clary wasn't sure, but she felt a little wave of worry run over her. Shadow and Hunter were her babies, and while she had noticed that something had been a bit off with the little white one, she hadn't thought it was bad enough for the vets. She sent off a text to her mum, thanking her for taking Hunter in and letting her know that she would be back later that night. Then she headed off to Jace's.

His front door was unlocked, and she walked inside, kicking her shoes into the corner. Something smelt absolutely amazing, and her stomach growled. Even though she was in a diner all day, she only ate there when she absolutely had to.

"Something smells fucking good," Clary called out as she skipped down the hall and toward the kitchen. She'd only been here a couple of times, he seemed to prefer coming over to her place. She got the impression that he liked the clutter and homeliness that came with being in her house, and he even liked her cats, although Shadow definitely didn't like him. She still turned up her nose at him and walked in the opposite direction, but he found it amusing.

"Just something to tide us over until dinner," Jace said as she joined him in the kitchen and shoved her face in his way as she tried to see what he was cooking. "Hey! No!" He slapped her wrist when she tried to stick her finger in the pot. "They'll be ready soon."

"What are they?"

"Lemon-caper Parmesan potato salad bites," he replied offhandedly, and then lifted his eyebrows in surprise when she let out a snort of laughter. "What?"

"So fancy," she jabbed him in the side with her finger. He dodged away from her and then shrugged. "Where did you learn to cook?"

"My mum," Jace's voice dropped a few octaves and Clary pressed her lips together. "It was when I was younger, before she got all...Medicated."

"You never talk about her," she commented, not wanting to push him, because she knew all about family issues that didn't want to be discussed.

"She died," he said abruptly. "Drunk driver." Clary bit her tongue, her mind flashing back to the first night that they met. His irrational anger when he had snatched the keys out of her hand and driven her home. She knew that she was fine, that she would have been okay driving home, but he didn't know that. He just saw a girl coming out a bar, probably reeking of booze.

It didn't look so good.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, reaching out to touch her finger against the top of his hand. She massaged it against him for a moment, a comforting gesture before she took in a deep breath and looked back at the food. "So how long until these babies are ready? I'm starving!"

"I swear you're always hungry," Jace smirked. "How are you so tiny?"

"I get plenty of...Exercise," she reached around and gave his ass a squeeze and he laughed.

"Go into the lounge, I've got the movie all queued up and ready to go," he told her.

"Sounds good," Clary grinned at him and left him to do his thing. He looked after her, before quickly turning back to finish off their food. He liked how comfortable she was around him, a complete contrast from how they had been when they had first met. He quickly finished off their food and put it into the oven to have the cheese melt and the tops brown, and then headed into the lounge. Clary was stretched out on the couch, and she shifted to make room for him when he came in. " _Tarzan_?" Clary grinned, looking at the screen.

"Hey, maybe it's not Disney princesses, but it's one of the best Disney movies of all times," Jace defended.

"I can agree with that," Clary smirked as he sat down and she put her head in his lap, one of her hands resting beside her face, on his knee. The warmth of her hand felt strangely familiar, and it just seemed to fit that he would put his hand on her hair. It felt...Nice. Her hair was tied away from her face, and he looped his fingers through the band to pull it out. She didn't seem to mind, shaking out her hair and letting him card his fingers through it. About ten minutes into the movie, he got up to get the food, and when he got back, Clary was sitting up, looking excitedly as he put a plate in front of her. She picked up the first one, and stuck it in her mouth. "Oh my god!" She squeaked. "Hot!" She waved her hand in front of her face, opening her mouth in an extremely unladylike fashion.

"Well, it did just come out of the oven," Jace laughed at the expression on her face.

"But it's so good," she groaned as she kept chewing, and then panting, trying to exhale the hot air. "This is torture," she concluded before swallowing.

"You are ridiculous, you realize that?" Jace snorted, but there was a fond look in his eyes.

"Fuck you, I'm awesome," Clary retorted before picking up another one, clearly not having learnt her lesson as she put another on in her mouth. Jace watched in amazement as she downed another three and then snuggled up next to them. "You know what, Blondie? I'll keep you around if you keep feeding me."

"I like the sound of that," Jace murmured softly, so quiet that she didn't hear it over the sound of the TV.

 _My song recommendations for this time!_ Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic _the cover by Sleeping At Last,_ I Can't Even _by The Neighbourhood and_ In My Blood _by The Veronicas, which was recommended to me by Caaatttt. Ooh, also a couple of TV shows that I've started watching are_ Lucifer _and_ Blindspot _, which are both pretty good. And I finally got around to watching Straight Outta Compton! So glad I finally watched it. Hahaha._

 _Also, I've updated my profile again, since you guys seemed to like when I modified it last time. So check it out :)_

 _Leave a review, let me know what you think of the chapter, recommend any new songs to me, and let me know if you'd like a preview of the next chapter :)_

 _As a complete side note...No matter who you voted for, there were going to be a lot of unhappy people, and I can see that there have already been protests through the night. Love is going out to everyone, as this is something that will affect us all xx_


	25. Chapter 25

_This is the second to last update before I go on a short break over Christmas/New Years! Hope you enjoy it :)_

"I feel as though you promised me dinner," Clary piped up, after _Tarzan_ finished, and then they had moved on to _Toy Story_. "And I'm hungry."

"It's only six," Jace pointed out.

"My stomach doesn't care what time it is," Clary shot back at him, giving a little pout. Jace rolled his eyes and looked back at the TV. The movie had almost finished, and when the credits started rolling, she crawled over Jace, putting her hands on either side of his face. She scratched her nail lightly over his forehead, dipping into the crease between his eyebrows, and then down his nose. Her thumbs brushed over his full lips, and then she leaned in and kissed him. The kiss started slow, which Jace had found that he had started to like these kisses. Where their mouths would open but they hadn't quite gotten to the point where they were rolling their tongues into one anothers mouths. Clary's nose bumped against Jace's and he let out a huff of a laugh, and Clary grinned against his mouth, wrapping his fingers around his neck, ruffling at the shaggy strands at the nape of his neck.

"You always taste so good," Jace breathed before he realized he was speaking, and Clary's eyes flicked up to meet his as their lips parted for a second. Clary chewed down on her lip for a second and then leaned back in for another lick. Jace shifted them easily, stretching her out underneath him, and then sliding one hand under her shirt. Instead of going straight for her breasts though, his hand took it's time, sliding over the soft skin of her stomach, exploring her torso with his fingertips. The whole thing was slow, and sweet, and Clary felt this ache in her limbs as Jace's leg settled between hers, the pressure there but not insistent. Her back arched and his hand spread across the perfect curve at the bottom, holding her against him.

Clary's hands unbuttoned his shirt, pushing it open and scratching her fingernails over his skin. One of her fingers caught his nipple and he let out a soft grunt against her mouth. The kiss slowly got more heated, their heads tilting to accommodate for each other, and they pulled at each others clothes until they were a heap on the ground. Jace let out a frustrated groan when he realized that he didn't have any condoms in the room, and Clary laughed as he said he would be back, getting up and disappeared from the lounge, reappearing a few seconds later with a condom in his hand. He settled back over her, and Clary brought her knees up to give him a better angle. Jace couldn't help but dip a finger inside her, feeling her wetness around his digit and Clary's breathing hitched.

He rolled on the condom, bracing one arm by her head as he pushed inside her. Clary let out a low moan as he stretched her, her warmth surrounding his cock and clenching. Jace couldn't take his eyes off her; the way that her breathing become more rapid, so that her chest was lifting up and down, the way that her green eyes seemed even brighter as they stared up at him, the way her cheeks were flushed red.

She was beautiful.

Clary could feel herself so close, and she reached between their bodies to roll her finger in tight circles over her clit. It had been a slow build, rolling against each other, arousal slowly building, and whenever she came when a cock was in her, rather than fingers or tongue, the orgasm was always more fierce. Jace saw the urgency in her face and he began thrusting into her harder, faster, and she let out a whine as their combined efforts brought her over the edge, feeling it wash over her from her toes and spread out to her limbs.

"Shit," she sighed, her body tightening, bowing for a few seconds as she rode out the waves, her hand falling away from her centre and her other hand clenching at his forearm and leaving deep red marks behind. After Jace finished, he got up and left, while Clary just laid out on the couch, feeling sated. Even naked, she was warm enough; Jace had turned up the central heating when they were watching movies so that they were comfortable, and now she felt so relaxed she wondered if she was going to fall asleep. Jace came back, condom gone and cleaned up, and he handed her a damp cloth. Jace smiled at her as he sat down next to her, and Clary shifted, curling up next to him.

They knew that what they had wasn't straight forward.

It wasn't simple.

But they hadn't broached the subject yet, and they both seemed to be dancing around the subject. They had their own issues, their own problems, but things seemed just a little bit better when they were together.

"So I know you don't owe me anything," Jace began, sounding uncertain, which was a weird tone for him. "And don't think that you have to tell me anything just because...You know," he licked his lower lip, glancing at Clary out of the corner of his eye. "But why did you leave New York? I mean, you seem to have adjusted and shit, but you were—" he let out a snort. "You were kind of like angry ball of fire when you first came here. Like you were running away from something?" Clary sighed, putting a little distance between her and Jace, leaning against the back of the couch rather than against Jace. "I mean, you don't have to tell me, I was just..."

"You know, you were pretty pissy when I first met you as well," Clary pointed out.

"Yeah, well," Jace winced. "You kinda kept catching me at bad times?" He tried to excuse his behavior and Clary just rolled her eyes at him, but didn't look mad. Clary didn't say anything for a while, and Jace wondered if that was the end of the conversation, if she was trying to shut him down in the most polite way she could. He put his hand on her knee, to show her that it was okay, and she turned his hand over, tracing her finger along the open palm.

"It was my dad and my brother, in that photo," Clary began, her voice stretched. "That photo you saw in my bag?" Jace didn't need her to clarify that, they knew exactly what photo she was talking about, but he nodded at her anyway. "Things were good, with all of us. Like...It could be bad, really bad, but it seemed to always even out good in the end, you know?" She went quiet and her finger stopped making patterns on his hand. "My dad is pretty infamous in New York. He runs one of the biggest gangs there—drug smuggling, money laundering, etc etc." Jace tried to keep his expression neutral, but he knew that his golden eyes widened and his nostrils flared. "I didn't really know what he did when I was younger. I think I was...Maybe thirteen? That was when I realized that the other kids in school were scared of me, why their parents never wanted them to come over to my house, didn't want me going over there, like for play dates and shit."

"That sucks," Jace murmured sympathetically.

"Yeah," Clary shrugged. "But there were the kids of the other gang members, and my brother, and so it was okay. Um," she scratched at the side of her face. "I mean, I guess it sounds weird for people who didn't grow up like I did, but everything was normal for me, you know? It was family. Rough around the edges and shit, but family. My dad wanted me to make sure that I could fight and defend myself, and I liked that. I like being strong and—"

"So he got you into the boxing and things like that?"

"Yeah, him and my brother," Clary nodded. "It started getting worse after I turned fifteen. Dad started getting angrier, going out of control, flying off the handle over the stupidest shit. He started cheating on mum, and they would get into this really big fights, and sometimes he would hit her. Jon would try to stop him, but then they would just end up fighting as well. And he..." she took in a deep breath. "He kept coming home with blood on his hands." She swallowed hard and Jace tightened his grip on her hand. "For years, there had been police and FBI watching us, trying to find a way to get to dad, to take him down properly. But he always had a way around it. I didn't know at the time that it was because he was killing them," her voice hitched a little. "I mean, I should have known that, right? I just...I didn't." Jace's stomach twisted painfully. "And that wasn't the only people he hurt and killed. One night, I came home, and I was drunk. I had been out with a couple of friends, and I was being stupid and I got in his way."

"What happened?" Jace asked quietly.

"It wasn't anything...Terrible, I guess, not compared to a lot of the other things he did," she shrugged, staring ahead. "He was drunk as well, but he was angry drunk. I was just, ya know, singing and laughing and shit. Something must have gone wrong that day, because he was furious. I was in the kitchen, getting something to eat and making a total mess and heaps of noise. He came in, told me to shut up. I just laughed, and he got angrier. So he slapped me around a bit, my head hit the side of the fridge and knocked me unconscious." Jace' didn't realize how tightly he was holding her hand until he saw that her fingers were now white and bloodless, and he tried to relax his grip. "He knocked out two of my teeth and split my lip," her free hand went to touch the corner of her lip, tugging it forward slightly. Jace could see an ever so slight blemish on the inside. "It wasn't anything stitches and some dental surgery couldn't fix, but that was it for mum. She knew that Jon would never leave dad, he was too deep in that life and he was already moving up as second in command, but she asked me to come with her. And so I went. I went with her to the feds, and they stowed us away here to keep us safe until..."

"Until what?" Jace questioned.

"Until the trial," Clary replied, her words shaky. "We're going to testify against him."

* * *

"Where's our red head?" Simon asked from where he was standing in the kitchen, looking through the gap in the wall to the counter. It was the next morning, and Simon had been expecting Clary to walk in the door at nine o'clock when her shift started.

"She called in this morning," Aline replied. "Said she needed a mental health day, although I personally just think she's shacked up somewhere, screwing Jace." Simon made a face and shrugged. "Guess you're stuck with just me."

"Dammit," Simon smirked at her, and then nodded over her shoulder when there was a man walking through the door. Aline turned around and flashed a smile.

"Hey, what can I get you today?" She asked. The man looked like he could be a truck driver, a little rough around the edges, a ragged denim jacket and a beanie pulled low over his eyes. He pulled out a photo from his pocket and slid it over the counter.

"Have you seen this girl?" He grunted, and Aline looked down, her eyebrows pulling together when she saw Clary looking back at her from the shiny, wrinkled paper.

 _As I was going through and editing these chapters, I was watching_ Princess Bride _with my hubby. Omg. Absolutely love that movie. Don't think I'll ever get sick of it. It's just so fucking amazing! Will always be in my top five movies :) I pretty much quote every line as the movie plays. Whoops. Hahahaha. My song rec's for this time are_ On Your Side _by The Veronicas and_ Time After Time _the cover by Jessica Mauboy._

 _Leave a review, let me know what you guys think :)_

 _I'll send out a preview for everyone who's logged in xx_


	26. Chapter 26

_This is my last update of the year! I just wanted to say a massive thank you to all of your support you guys have shown me and reviews that you have left. I'll be back around February next year, but until then, I'm still able to be reached through here if you send me a PM, or if you wanted to add me on Facebook or Snapchat :) Also, make sure you check out the authors note at the bottom in regards to my upcoming stories._

It had been a spur of the moment decision to call into work and spend the way day in bed with Jace. She was surprised when she rolled over and saw the time on the clock on the bedside, glowing at her and saying that it was just after eight. She didn't need to be at work until nine, but she knew that Jace started at eight, and given how uptight and punctual he always was, usually he would be there already. But he was still laying next to her, awake but definitely not in any rush to get up. She had asked what he was doing and he had shrugged, saying that he wanted to wait for her to get up before he left. So she had suggested an alternative, that neither of them should get out of bed, and they should both call in sick.

She had been surprised when he had agreed.

He cooked breakfast while she took a shower, but then he joined her in the shower, lifting her up and holding her against the wall as he fucked her, and so their breakfast got cold. Neither of them really cared though, re-heating it and then sitting out the back on his balcony. Afterwards they watched TV, having sex again on the couch, and then Clary finally said around two that she should probably get home. Her phone had died early morning, and Jace didn't have the same charger as her, and she was worried about Hunter.

"So, today was nice," Clary said as she walked out toward her car, Jace next to her, one hand on her side and the other in his pocket.

Things had definitely shifted last night; with her staying over properly, and emptying out her heart about her family and the reason why she was in this town. Even the way they had slept last night, their bodies curled around each other as though it was something that they did on a regular basis. And then when they were watching TV, they were just so comfortable in each others company, fingers linked together.

"It was," Jace nodded his head slowly, using the hand that was on her body to turn her around so that she was pressed against her car. He took in a deep breath, and was looking her up and down, this somber look on his face. Clary frowned as she tried to figure out what was wrong with him, because his golden eyes looked suddenly cloudy. She put her hand on his bicep, giving it a squeeze. "Look, there's something more here, right? The whole...'Let's not make it complicated' and shit—it _is_ complicated, right?" Clary's hand froze on his arm, and he visibly saw her swallow. Jace didn't really know what to do, because this was usually a reversed situation. Girls asked him where their relationship stood, and he was the one that gave them awkward, half smiles as he tried to tell them he wasn't interested.

And now it looked as though Clary was trying to do the same to him now.

"If I'm reading this wrong, then just stop me whenever," Jace muttered, feeling uncomfortable.

"No, no, it's not that," Clary murmured, taking in a breath through her nose. "I'm just..." she kept staring a him, searching his eyes, before she finally nodded. "No, you're right," she assured him, although her voice sounded strained. "There's definitely something more going on here," the words all sounded so foreign coming out of her mouth. "But can we just...Let things move on their own, like at their own pace? I'm just...I've never really been the kind of girl that's been into relationships, even though that's what I want...With you." The smile of relief that came from Jace told her that he would be completely okay with that.

"Just what I was thinking," Jace replied. He leaned in and gave her a kiss. It was sweet and brief, and Clary felt her body doing that warming all over thing that only came from Jace. "I'll call you later, yeah?"

"Yeah," Clary gave him a flash of a smile before getting into her car. She waved at him before reversing down the driveway and accelerating away. Jace crossed his arms over his chest as he watched her leave. He didn't usually spending a whole night and then day with a girl, in fact other than Isabelle, he wasn't too sure he never had, even with Kaelie. If he spent a night with them, by the next morning, he was foaming at the mouth to get them to leave, completely over their company. But with Clary, he was actually sad to see her go. He waited until her car turned at the end of the street, and then walked down to get his letters from his mail box. As he started walking back toward the house, he saw a car pulling away from the curb and driving in the same direction that Clary had turned.

A car with a New York licence plate.

* * *

Clary plugged her phone in when she got in her car, letting it get at least a little bit of charge before she got home. When she back to her place, she noted that Shadow was still the only cat there, which meant Hunter must still be at the vet. There was no note on the fridge, so Jocelyn might have text her, so Clary plugged her phone back in and impatiently waited for it to charge back up enough so that she could actually turn it back on. She changed clothes, tying her hair in a sloppy bun on top of her head, before her phone let out a buzz as it turned on and started receiving messages. There was a couple from Simon and one from Jocelyn. She opened the one from her mum first.

 _Hunter is going to be fine. They just want to keep him in for one more night of observation. Hope you had fun last night._

There was a little winky face emotion at the end, and Clary rolled her eyes, a quirk of a smile on her face. She exited the messages from her mother and went to the ones from Simon, all three of them sent around nine o'clock that morning, her smile quickly disappearing as she read them.

 _Clary, someone was just here looking for you. They had a picture of you and your mum that they showed around._

 _Clary, give me a call. It was kind of weird, and he was scary looking._

 _Clary, is there a meth problem we need to talk about? Do you owe money or something?_

"Shit," Clary breathed, a wave of nausea rolling over her. Shadow let out a meow, winding her way around Clary's ankles, sensing her owners distress as Clary's hands started shaking. Her legs felt weak, and she stumbled backwards until she was sitting down on the edge of her bed. She put her phone down on the bed next to her to stop herself from clenching it too tightly and breaking the device. Shadow was staring up at her from the ground, her yellow-green eyes wide as she regarded her.

Someone was looking for her.

Someone had found her and her mother.

And there was only one person who was looking for her and Jocelyn, and that was Valentine.

She needed to call her mum.

She tapped her fingers across the screen, lifting it to her ear and listening as it dialed. Her knee was jiggling up and down, trying to ignore the nasty feeling in her stomach. The call dialed right through to voice mail and Clary let out an angry growl, ringing again. This time the call was answered on the third ring.

"Babe? I can't really talk right now, I'm at work—"

"Mum, you need to get home. You need to call the Suits right now," Clary's words were all jumbling together, falling over each other as they rushed to get out.

"Clary, what's happened?" Jocelyn's tone dropped, suddenly serious. "What's wrong?"

"I didn't go into work today, I spent the day with Jace. And I didn't think anything of it, right? I just—"

"I need you to be straight to the point, Clary," Jocelyn interrupted the unnecessary rambling, and Clary could hear movement on the other end of the phone. Probably her mum gathering her things at her desk. "What happened?"

"Simon sent me a text and said that there was a guy who was looking for me, and he had a picture—of both of us," there was a quiver in her voice and Clary wanted to kick herself for falling apart right now. This was the worst time for that to happen to her, and she took in a deep breath to try and soothe herself. "But that's all, I haven't seen anyone following me, but then again I've been at Jace's house all day."

"Okay, okay," Jocelyn made a clicking noise with her tongue, a habit of hers when she was thinking. "Okay, I'll call the Suits. Grab our go bags, and stay out of sight, okay?"

"I know," Clary agreed and then her eyes widened as she looked down at Shadow. "No, wait. I have to go and get Hunter from the vets. I can't leave him behind."

"Baby, he'll be fine," Jocelyn sounded as though she was moving around, grabbing her things and getting ready to walk out of the office. "The vets will look after him until we can figure something out."

"Mum, I can't just—"

"Don't you leave the house, Clarissa Morgenstern," Jocelyn hissed at her, using her full name and making Clary sigh. "You need to stay in doors, and stay away from the windows and doors. I should be able to be home in twenty minutes, and then we're going to wait until Luke and Hodge show up, okay?" There was a silence for a few minutes, other than the slam of a door on the other end of the phone, Jocelyn getting into her car. "You are not to go and get that cat, Clary. Okay?!"

"Fine," Clary sighed. The call cut off, and Clary stared down at Shadow, who jumped up onto her lap and put two paws on her chest, letting out a long whine. Clary stroked her fingers absent mindedly over Shadow's head. It was going to take the Suits about half an hour to get here, it wasn't going to be difficult to go to the vets and get Hunter, and then arrive back here in time. She let out a sigh, staring down at Shadow's little face, and then down at her phone to the time. "Okay, sweets," she nuzzled her nose against Shadow's. "I'm gonna go get Hunter, and I'll be back before mum even gets here." She grabbed her keys and shoved on a pair of Vans and walked back out to her car. She took a moment to glance up and down the street, but she didn't see any suspicious cars. Not that she would really know what a suspicious car would look like, because whoever it was who was looking for them was probably trying their hardest not to stick out.

Clary shook her head sharply, because she couldn't be getting paranoid right now.

All she needed to do was get to the vets, and then get back here, and then her and her mum would be whisked away by the Suits.

Away.

From _Jace_.

That thought stopped her short in her tracks.

If she stayed—if she and her mum stayed—then they would be in danger. This person had to be someone on Valentine's payroll, and what he would do to them after all these months of hiding and probably knowing that they had gone to the Feds...Clary didn't even want to think about it. And if they stayed, it would put Jace in danger as well.

And that was something that she couldn't risk.

Get Hunter.

Get home.

Get out.

That was the plan.

 _Now, something that I wanted to ask everyone, is if you can all check out the upcoming stories on my profile, and let me know what your top three picks would be? Just so I have an idea of the ones that people are looking forward to and can focus on those :)_

 _The things that I'm into at the moment are Charles/Erik from_ X-Men _, the reboot trilogy, with Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy. Holy shit. So beautiful. Completely obsessed. And then it's like I've become re-obsessed with Derek/Stiles from_ Teen Wolf. _The songs I've had on replay are_ Can't Fight This Feeling _by Justin Timberlake, which I know has been completely overplayed, but it's just such a happy song, I'm totally in love! And the second one is_ Last Night On Earth _by Delta Goodrem, which is just so sweet. And the last one is_ Give It Up To Me _by Sean Paul and Keyshia Cole, an old one._

 _Right! So, I'll be back next year, pretties :) Until then, one last review? Pretty please? And I'll send out a preview :)_

 _Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year to you all :) xxx_


	27. Chapter 27

_Okay! So I'm back! And I'm back early, you may notice! I was planning to update until next week but I've had so many reviews and messages on here and on Facebook asking for me to post earlier, so here we go! Uh, I've also had a lot of people asking why I decided to take a break for a while—almost two months! Holy shit! I'll keep it brief so you can get on with reading...1) Life! Real life always comes first and it's been super busy. 2) Health. This definitely comes into the 'real life' category, but something that some of you will know is I deal with some insane headaches and migraines on an almost weekly basis and at times work is draining enough, I can't come home and sit in front of my computer and type/edit. 3) Response. So many of you guys are incredible. FUCKING INCREDIBLE. But that doesn't discount the occasional nasty review or message which really hits home when I spend so much time pouring my heart into these stories :(_

 _Anyway, on with the story!_

"Jace?" Lydia Branwell looked up from the receptionist desk where it looked as though she was getting everything closed up for the day. "I didn't know you were coming in today. Is something wrong?"

"No, no, everything's fine," Jace gave her a smile. It was after five, and everyone was already gone home. Lydia was a good worker, she was always the last one to leave. She was hot as well, her and Jace had gotten together a couple of times when she had first started working here, but they had parted on good terms. She was now engaged to a guy from out of town, and he was pretty sure they were getting married soon. "You can go home, I just needed to do something in my office for real quick."

"Okay," she shrugged as she turned off her computer and picked up her bag from the ground. "I'll see later." Jace nodded as he walked past her, ignoring her as she walked around the show room and turned off all the lights. His father was gone, and Jace doubted that Sebastian had even come in at all, and Jace walked past their rooms and straight to his office. He sat down at his desk and turned on his computer, waiting for it to boot up as he drummed his fingers on the desk top impatiently. As soon as his computer turned on, he opened up the DMV records that he had access to, and expanded the region to cover as much as he could, rather than just their township. He typed in the licence plate number and waited as the application did it's work.

Victor Aldertree.

It was a New York address as well. Jace pursed his lips as he looked at the picture and date of birth. He didn't really know what he was meant to do with the name, but he could ring Clary and tell her, maybe she recognized it. Maybe she wouldn't and it was absolutely nothing to do with her, it could be completely unrelated. Jace sighed, and then opened up another tab on the computer and typed the name into Google. There were a couple of results from Facebook, and then there was a few hits on a page which said something about private investigators. Jace clicked on it, and there was a list of different PI's in the New York area, with their names, contact information, and photographs.

It was the same guy.

This definitely sounded like something that Clary needed to know about. Jace swallowed nervously and picked up his phone, finding her number in his contact list and pressing down on it to dial. It rang a couple of times before going to her answer phone. He growled under his breath, trying again and getting the same thing.

"Okay, Clary? You need to call me back. It's important. Actually," Jace looked at the photo on the screen again, at the guy who looked vaguely dangerous, even just from the tiny thumbnail. "Actually, I'm coming over to your place. I'll see you soon."

* * *

"Hey, I'm here to pick up my cat," Clary might have sounded a little more breathless and anxious than a person would usually sound when coming to pick up their pet from the animal clinic. The girl behind the counter raised her eyebrows and looked her up and down before looking back at her computer.

"What's the name?" She asked.

"Hunter. My mother, Jocelyn Fray, brought him in. He was acting a little funny, wasn't eating and acting sluggish and shit," Clary replied, unable to stop herself from looking over her shoulder as the door behind her banged open, and then looked out the big display window at the front. The girl behind the counter gave her another funny look at her jumpiness.

"Yeah, okay. I mean we're still keeping him under observation, but it looked as though he just ate something that didn't agree with him," the girl read out from the screen. "You can take him home if you want, but it's after five, so I need to charge you the full fee." Clary rolled her eyes at that but nodded. "Here we go," she pushed across the pin pad and Clary swiped her card through. The girl got up and walked through the door marked Employees Only, going out the back to get Hunter. Clary finished the transaction and tapped her foot impatiently on the ground as she waited for the girl to come back. She looked up at the time on the clock, and saw she had already been gone for fifteen minutes. Her phone was still at home, and she needed to get back before her mother got back, because if she didn't see her there and then tried to ring her phone and couldn't get through, she was going to panic. The Suits would be there soon as well, and she definitely needed to be back by then.

"Fucking hell," she sighed as a minute ticked by and the girl still wasn't back with Hunter. Finally she came back through the door and held out the cat cage where Hunter was meowing and looking generally pathetic and unhappy about being cooped up. "Thank you," she snapped at the girl as she grabbed for the cage.

"Oh, just one other thing," the girl said as Clary reached the door, and the red head sighed in annoyance and looked back over at her. "The address for your cat? From it's GPS chip? It says that you're still in New York. Do you want me to update that information for you?" Clary's expressive eyes flew wide.

The GPS chip.

She had completely forgotten about that, and Jocelyn evidently had as well.

That would have been how they were tracked here.

"Shit," Clary hissed as she stormed out of the veterinary clinic and toward her car, trying not to jostle Hunter.

* * *

Jace pulled up outside Clary's house and frowned when he saw Clary's car missing from the driveway. Jocelyn's car was there, though, so he strode up toward the door. He rapped his knuckles twice against the door and bit down on the tip of his tongue as he waited for an answer. He heard movement inside but no one came to the door so he sighed and knocked again.

"Jocelyn? Hey, I need to talk to you, Jocelyn!" He started shouting as he pounded his open palm against the door, and then suddenly, the door was swinging open and he was being pulled through by a person who was most definitely not Jocelyn. Jace let out a surprised grunt as the door was slammed shut and he was pushed up against it, a muscular arm shoved up against his throat while a gun muzzle was pressed against his temple. "Whoah, whoah, buddy! What the fuck are you doing?!"

"What are you doing here?!" Demanded the man. "Why are you here?!"

"I'm here to see Clary, but if Jocelyn's here, that works too," Jace's words were coming out a little squeakier than he intended them to. He had been in quite a few fights over the year, and he had hardly ever lost, he was very good at fighting and defense after all of his years at the gym, but he had never had a gun pressed to his head before.

"Why are you here?!" The man demanded again, pressing the gun harder into his head and making Jace close his eyes momentarily. The arm pressed to his neck was cutting into his wind pipe and the breaths he was taking in were a lot more shallow than he would prefer. He tried to keep his voice level, and not sound as worried as he really felt when he responded to the man.

"I just told you—"

"Luke! Luke, what are you doing?!" Jace heard Jocelyn yelling from somewhere behind the man and he strained to try and see over his shoulder.

"You know this kid?!" Luke asked, loosening his grip ever so slightly at Jace's neck, but not removing the gun.

"Yes, yes, shit," Jocelyn rushed over to them, pulling at Luke's arm until he backed away, and Luke took in a couple of deep breaths. "Oh my god, Jace, are you okay?"

"Yeah, fine," Jace put his hand to his throat before shooting a glare over at the man in the suit. "Fucking hell, what did you think I was doing here? Coming here to kidnap them or some shit?" Jocelyn winced and glanced over at Luke, who was now joined by another man in a suit, an older man who looked even grumpier. "Look, I came here because there was this guy. He was parked outside by house when Clary left. He had NY plates, so I ran them at my work, and they belong to this private investigator dude."

"Wait, what?" Luke stepped forward, his face creased into a grimace.

"Yeah," Jace sent a glare over at Luke, making it clear that their first impression had left a nasty taste at the back of his mouth. "And after everything that Clary told me, I sort of thought that maybe you guys would want to know."

"Hold on, what did Clary tell you?" Hodge stepped forward, nudging Luke out of the way.

"Jace," Jocelyn reached out and put a hand on his arm. "Jace, what did my daughter tell you? And when did you see this car?"

"It was about half an hour ago," Jace kept his voice level, despite all the panicked expressions in the room. "As soon as she left, I went into my work and searched the plate—"

"Where do you work?" Luke snapped.

"I work at a car yard, okay?" Jace snapped, sending a glare over at Luke. "Anyway, where's Clary? Because she should be here, right? These Feds that are looking after you, shouldn't they be watching her too? Her cars not outside." He saw the way the two men prickled when he identified them as FBI.

"How much did Clary tell you?" Jocelyn bit out, her eyes flashing over to Luke and Hodge.

"She told me enough," Jace sighed and licked his lips, running his fingers through his hair in irritation. "Look, I'm not here to make trouble, okay? I'm just here because I wanted to help." Jocelyn looked at him for a long moment, her eyes a lot colder than he had seen them before, an icy, almost venomous expression on her face, and he suddenly understood Clary's comment a long time ago, about how her mother would do just fine in prison. Finally, she nodded her head once.

"Okay," she said. "Clary's fine. I told her to stay here until I got back, but she went to the vet to get Hunter," she rolled her eyes. "Those cats are like her babies. I knew she would go and get that damn cat."

"But you guys have a plan? To get out of here?" Jace asked, finally looking back over at the two agents, his eyebrows narrowing involuntarily as he looked at Luke.

"As soon as Clary gets back, we're—" Jocelyn's words were cut off as the door behind Jace smashed inwards. Jace jolted forward, feeling the force behind him as he grabbed Jocelyn and pulled her out of the way. He felt the cold air from outside hit his back and he heard the shouts of Luke and Hodge as they jumped in front of them. There was yelling and then there was a noise that Jace had only ever heard on TV.

A gun shot.

Jace swallowed hard as he let go of Jocelyn, the pair of them looking at each other before slowing turning around. His eyes went wide as he saw the men standing in the doorway. There were two on either side, both with guns in their hands which were pointed toward Luke and Hodge, and in the middle was another man that Jace recognized from Clary's photograph, her father. And next to him, his arm wrapped tightly around her forearm, was a scared looking Clary.

 _Right! So...How was it?_

 _I've got lots of recommendations I want to make coz I've been away for so long, but I'll just throw a couple out there. Movies—_ Moana _! It was amazing. So was_ Rogue One _, which I didn't expect to like because I'm not a big fan of Felicity Jones, but it was incredible, and Diego Luna is my new love. And a couple of songs I'm in love with at the moment are_ Falling For You _by Lyon Hart and_ Dangerously _by Charlie Puth._

 _Alright, so, tell me...Did you guys all have an amazing Christmas/New Years? Me and my hubby always travel for Christmas to see extended family, but it was just a quiet one at home with a couple of his family members, so that was nice. And for New Years we rented out a house by the beach with a couple of our close friends, so that was amazing._

 _Tell me what you guys got up to, and leave a review._

 _And if you guys want a preview of the next chapter, just ask, and I'll throw one out there ;) Don't forget to check out the new multi-chapter stories, which you guys all voted on, as well as a bunch of new oneshots I've written. I've gone and put some of them up :)_


	28. Chapter 28

_There's only three chapters left of this story! All of my stories are coming to an end, which is why I'm starting others up, but it's still sad that this one is almost over. I hope you enjoy this chapter :)_

"Valentine," Jocelyn growled out under her breath, confirming what Jace already knew. That the man holding Clary's arm so tight that it looked like he was trying to cut off the blood circulation was her _father_. There was a gun clenched in his hand, which he rested on her shoulder, the muzzle rubbing over the curve of her shoulder in a very threatening manner. Valentine's eyes turned toward his wife, and they were so cold and so dark they looked black, and Jace felt his whole body tense. He swallowed hard and tried to straighten up without drawing too much attention to himself, taking a half step sideways so that he was positioned in front of Jocelyn. He really couldn't do all that much to protect her, but he could at least stop her from seeing just how petrified her daughter was.

"Drop your weapons," one of the men with dark skin and hair growled at Luke and Hodge. The two Feds looked at the three men unwavering, obviously weighing their options. But they were out numbered, and Clary was positioned in front of Valentine, the man clearly giving the orders, so it's not like they could go for him without going through her. "You're outnumbered," the man snapped. "And we've got Clarissa."

"You wouldn't shoot your own daughter," Luke stated in a low voice, speaking to Valentine rather than the henchmen. "And you wouldn't start a gun fight and risk her getting shot by us either." Valentine made a pondering face, then absent mindedly shrugged.

"Gentleman," Valentine's voice was soft but one of the most terrifying tones Jace had ever heard. It made him shiver and really wish that he and Clary were back, curled up in his bedroom. "If you would lower your weapons." When neither man moved he sighed and shook his head a couple of times, lifting up his gun and firing a shot directly in Jace and Jocelyn's direction, even though his eyes never moved off the two agents. Jace's heart actually felt as though it stopped beating for a moment until his brain caught up with the rest of his body, realizing that neither himself or Jocelyn had been shot, and instead, the bullet had buried itself in the wall behind them.

"Alright," Luke snapped, his voice a little strained as he looked over his shoulder toward Jace and Jocelyn, and Jace realized that there was something in his eyes as he looked at the older woman. He was worried about her, which was normal, but there looked like maybe it was something more than a little professional worry. "We're putting our guns down," Luke turned back to Valentine, a nerve in his jaw jumping as he relaxed the grip on his piece. "Just everyone keep calm, so that we don't make a bigger mess here than there needs to be."

"A bigger mess?" Valentine sounded amused, as the agents unloaded their weapons and stripped them, dropping them onto the ground and holding up their hands, palms upward to show that they didn't mean any harm. "I really don't think that that's the problem here." There was something in his eyes and in his voice that made Jace even more nervous. The hand that was resting the gun on Clary's shoulder was shaking slightly, and there was a redness in his eyes that Jace had seen a hundred times before at parties.

This guy was high.

Which means this guy was probably unhinged.

Making him even more dangerous.

"I think that my beautiful, loyal wife and darling daughter have created enough of a mess here, and I'm just here to clean it all up," Valentine said, waving his gun around a bit, jabbing it first in Jocelyn's direction, and then Clary's. "I get home one afternoon, and I find out that you two have left me." Clary took in a shaky breath, Jace watched as her eyes flickered to the side to look at her mother before she directed them back ahead, locking them onto Jace's.

He had no idea what he was meant to do here, so he held his position in front of Jocelyn, feeling her hand on his bicep, and kept his eyes on Clary. She didn't look quite as scared as he would have been in her place, and even though he could see a slight tremble in her chin, he was struck again by how strong she was.

This had better not be the last time he was able to think that.

He really hoped he was going to be able to _tell_ her that at some point, rather than just think it.

They just really needed to get out of this situation first.

Unfortunately, the two men who were paid and in charge of protecting the two red-headed woman in the room were both unarmed, and looking a little defenseless with their hands in the air.

Clary watched as Jace's eyes worked their way around the room. She really hoped that he wasn't planning on doing anything stupid as they rested momentarily on the guns that were dismantled on the ground before looking back up at the henchmen on either side of her father. The one who had originally spoken was Emil Pangborn, and she had known him for years. He was loyal to her father to the point where he had made his own girlfriend disappear when there were rumors that she was informing to the police. She had absolutely no doubt that he would do whatever was necessary here, and that included shooting two Feds and a random citizen.

"Now, I gave them a chance to come back," Valentine continued, talking in this lilting, almost sing-song manner. "I'm a reasonable man, and I understand that perhaps things got a little out of hand one night." The gun slid up Clary's neck and lightly tapped twice against her cheek, and Jace remembered what she had told him, about when he got drunk and smacked out two of her teeth. "Except then a week went by. And then another week. And then _another week_ ," his voice was sounding brittle now. "And then a month. And that's when I hear from my sources that there's two new people who have been added to the testimony list and are so top secret that their names haven't even been added to the case files? Well, it all starts to make a little sense."

"Valentine," Jocelyn gritted out, swallowing audibly and Valentine glared over at her, seemingly seeing right through Jace. "You were fucking loosing your shit." Jace had a feeling that she was going to tip him over the edge with the way she was moving forward, purposefully shouldering past Jace. Valentine still hadn't seemed to process that there was someone else in the room and so Jace didn't want to make a scene by forcing Jocelyn to stay still, so he let himself be pushed to the side. "I couldn't let you hit my daughter—you can push your men around, you can push _me_ around—you _cannot_ do that to _my daughter_ ," Jocelyn's words were steel and Jace took in a shaky breath as he saw Valentine's self-assured smile drop from his face.

She could clearly get under his skin.

She was feisty, and strong, and stubborn.

Exactly like Clary.

"You hit our daughter in the face, Valentine," Jocelyn growled, still advancing slowly. The two men on either side of Valentine shifted from foot to foot, looking at the man in the middle, but he wasn't signalling for them to do anything, so they stayed still and kept their guns trained on the two agents. "You hit our daughter and thought I would stay with you? With all that other shit going on in our lives, I should have left a long time ago but after that night—"

"Jocie, stop," Luke said through clenched teeth, putting out his hand to stop her from continuing forward, and Clary blinked at the interruption. In fact everyone in the room seemed surprised at the interjection, and Valentine's eyebrows drew together, looking furious for the first time since he stepped into the house. Despite how scary his voice had sounded, he had this creepily serene expression on his face. Clary let out a little gasp as he tightened his grip on her arm and she jerked her shoulder a bit, trying to get some relief from the hold he had on her.

"Jocie?" Valentine bit out, mimicking Luke. His hand went down to where Luke's hand was touching Jocelyn's wrist and then back up to their faces. Hodge let out an imperceptive sigh, shaking his head slightly, and Jace tried to figure out what had just happened that had flipped the switch here. Valentine hadn't looked angry as Jocelyn was advancing on him, but it was as soon as Luke had touched her that the heated expression had come over his face. "Huh," he snorted. "Are you sure it was because of our daughter, _Joc-e-lyn_?" He dragged out her name. "Are you sure it wasn't because you were fucking this man on the side—" he jerked the muzzle of his gun at Luke. "—And thought that you'd like a fresh start?"

That was when all the shouting started.

The tension in the room seemed to snap, Jocelyn and Valentine screaming at each other, Clary standing between the two of them like a bargaining chip, trying to keep her shoulders squared, and then Valentine's men and the henchmen poised and ready to spring at each other if they got any indication that they needed to.

They were going to start shooting.

Someones temper was going to snap and someone was going to _shoot,_ Jace could feel it.

He was behind everyone else, but that didn't matter. He was a witness to all of this, he knew how these things worked. Jace took in a couple of deep breaths, once again looking at Clary who's expression was pained and her lips were pinched as she looked between her two parents.

Just as Jace was wondering if he would be able to reach into his pocket and pull out his phone without being noticed in the commotion, something through the window caught his eye. It was the window the right of the broken in front door, so on the side that he was standing and could see through clearly. Two men were coming up the driveway, both of them were holding guns. They were both hunched forward slightly, as though they were trying not to be seen by the people inside, walking stealthily. One of them was the guy from the DMV picture, the one who was parked across the street from his house. And the other one...Jace frowned as he tried to see his face properly as the two men approached the front door, still out of sight from anyone not looking through the window.

It was Jon; the other man from the photograph and Clary's brother.

 _Happy Valentines day to you, beautiful people! My song recommendations this time are_ Wild Things _by Alessia Cara. Pretty much anything by her actually, a massive thank you to my babe reppinda5o3 for making me listen to her in the first place. Then there's_ Paris _by Chainsmokers, and_ Please Don't Go _by Joel Adams. All songs I'm obsessed with at the moment._

 _Something that I forgot to make mention of in my last update—and I can't believe I forgot because I was a total mess when it happened—was Carrie Fisher :( OMG. It was so horrible to hear about her passing, and then her mother. My heart goes out to their family._ Star Wars _and Princess Leia will always hold such a special place in my heart xx_

 _Please leave a review, let me know what you guys think! If you're logged in and you ask, I'll send out a preview :) xx_


	29. Chapter 29

_Second to last chapter! Another one of my stories ending :( Hope you enjoy the chapter!_

Jon saw the Jace watching him through the window, and from the expression on the other mans face, it seemed as though he recognized him. He put his finger to his lips, to indicate that he keep quiet, and Jace nodded his head once, just jutted his chin forward, not wanting to draw any attention, but he still kept his hand in his pocket and on his phone. He had no idea what the game plan was here, but maybe if there was enough commotion raised, then he would be able to get out of the room and call the police. His stomach was twisting and his heart was hammering in his chest as he directed his eyes back toward the people in front of him, not wanting to stare through the window for too long. Jocelyn was still shouting at Valentine, while Clary looked as though she was pleading with her mother, trying to get her to her to calm down, not aggravate the situation anymore. Both of the Feds still looked coiled and ready to pounce.

Jon disappeared from the window, and then reappeared, this time directly behind Valentine and his men, and Jace saw a flash of regret over his face before he opened his mouth.

"Dad," he stated in a firm voice that somehow managed to supersede the rest of the shouting. It was enough to surprise Valentine and the two men on either side of him because they both jerked and began to turn around. That seemed like enough for Clary, because she threw her weight backwards and upwards, smashing the back of her head against her father's face. There was a horrible crunching noise and then blood was spurting from his nose. He let out a shout, but didn't completely let go of Clary. His grip loosened though, and then Jocelyn was jumping forward, her fingernails going straight for Valentine's eyes. There was screaming and shouting and the whole room seemed to erupt into chaos.

A gunshot went off and Jace let out a shout, instinctively ducking and covering his head, and then looking up and trying to figure out where the bullet went. From what he could see it had gone through the ceiling, and he let out a short sigh of relief before his eyes went back to the fighting in front of him. Both of the Feds were fighting the dark skinned man on Valentine's right, which was a little worrying if Jace had to be honest. It was taking both of them just to fight one of Valentines men, although to be fair, they were mainly struggling because the other man still had a gun held tightly in his hand that they were trying to get their hands on. Jocelyn and Clary were fighting Valentine, while Jon and the private investigator were shouting at the man on the other side of Valentine. Jon looked as though he had that one under control, his gun pointed at the mans head, trying to talk him down and drop his own weapon. The man looked like he was torn, his eyes going between Valentine and Jon, and Jace wondered if Jon had history with the man and was trying to appeal to him.

"Get out of here, Jace!" Clary shouted out to him as she thrust her elbow backwards, burying it into her fathers stomach, and it seemed as though that was enough for him to finally let her go. Although, it might have also been because Jocelyn was hanging off his other arm, stopping him from throwing any punches at his daughter or anyone else around. Jace ignored Clary's shout, even though his plan had originally been to run and call the police, because there was blood dripping from a cut on her head, and he could already see bright red fingerprints blooming against the pale skin of her upper arm as she stumbled away from her father.

"Not without you!" He growled as he grabbed her and attempted to pull her to the side of the room.

"I'm not leaving without my mum!" Clary snapped at him, pushing him away as he tried holding her back. Jocelyn threw a punch, but now that Valentine's other arm was free of Clary, he was easily able to grab her hair and jerk her head backwards, saying something in a low voice to her that no one else was able to hear. But whatever it was, it wasn't good, because Jocelyn's face drained of colour, her hand going up to her head to try and release some of the pressure. Luke and Hodge had managed to get Emil on the ground and kick away his gun, Hodge getting on top of him and pressing his knee into his back, both arms twisted behind his back. With him under control it only left Valentine and the third man.

Jon seemed to decide that he was done trying to talk down the third man, especially when he saw Valentine's grip on Jocelyn, because he suddenly lifted his gun and smacked it hard against the man's skull. Luke saw the hold that Valentine had on Jocelyn and charged at him. Luke managed to catch him around the waist and the two of them slammed to the ground, Jocelyn stumbling backwards. The gun in Luke's hand was knocked across the floor, skittering toward where Jace and Clary were standing. Jace automatically jumped backwards, only ever being near a gun used in paintball or laser tag, but Clary stepped forward, picking it up and holding it firmly in her hand, as though completely used to the weight and what exactly it meant to hold a weapon like that.

Luke and Valentine were still wrestling on the ground, but Jace saw Jon took in a deep breath and step forward. He kicked out with one foot, unceremoniously sending Luke sprawling off his father and pointed the gun directly at Valentine's head. Valentine stared up at his son, blood still streaming from his nose, and the cracks on his lips and the cuts on his face. There was confusion and anger on the fathers face, and Jon looked torn as he stared down at him, but his aim was unwavering.

"Why?" Valentine spat out, sending a tooth and blood spraying across the ground. "They left you too. _I_ was the one who stayed." By now, Luke was getting back to his feet, wiping a hand over his face and grabbing one of the guns that was on the ground and standing on Valentines other side.

"You are just my boss," Jon said quietly as he lowered his gun and flicked on the safety, slotting it into his waist band as Luke pulled out his phone and put it to his ear, gun still trained on Valentine. "They were my family. I was never going to let you hurt either of them." Valentine actually looked a little hurt at that sentiment, but rage soon over took his face, and he let out an inhuman growl as he tried to get up from the ground, looking as though he was going to lunge for his son.

A swift kick to his ribs, followed by a sickening _crack_ , from Jocelyn put that idea out of his head, and then Luke was flipping him over roughly, clearly not caring that the man probably had a couple of broken ribs, and was jerking his arms up high behind his back, shouting down orders into his phone that they needed back up at their location.

Jace let out a sigh of relief, his body sagging as he leaned against the wall, and Clary bit her lip as she looked back at him worriedly, the gun still clenched tightly in her hand.

* * *

The lounge was an absolute mess.

The front door was broken in, and there was glass shattered across the ground from the big window on the right—Jace didn't really remember, but someone must have punched it or been thrown up against it. Valentine and the two men who had come in with him had been lead away by the FBI, all of them in cuffs. The police had shown up before the FBI, and all of them had guns shoved in their faces to begin with, before Hodge and Luke had flashed their badges and they had backed down. The paramedics had also shown up, patched up Clary's head and her hands, along with Jocelyn's. They had checked over Jace as well, but he had managed to stay pretty detached from everything, although they said that there may be some shock which would sink in once his mind caught up with what he had gone through.

"So," Clary began as she came over to where Jace was standing, letting out a long sigh as she slumped against the wall next to him. "Is this the worst 'meet the family' thing that you've had to go through?" She joked weakly and Jace rolled his eyes over to her, snorting a little and shaking his head. They fell quiet as they looked over to where Jon was standing next to Luke and Jocelyn, talking in low tones. It turned out the private investigator was actually someone that _Jon_ had hired, and he was the one who had been looking for Clary at the diner. He had been following up on the same lead that Valentine and his men had gotten, and that was the alert from the GPS tracker when Hunter was taken into the vets, but he had already been in this part of the country which was why he had gotten here sooner.

"Is your brother okay?" Jace asked quietly. "They're not going to take him in or anything?"

"They don't have anything to take him in on, even if they wanted to arrest him," Clary replied. "He's got a licence for the weapon he's carrying, and he wasn't the one that came in here and threatened two federal agents."

"But isn't he a big part of the, uh...Gang? Mob? That your dad's a part of?" Jace raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, but that's why the trial is so important—why _we're_ so important," Clary reminded him softly. "Because they only have a bunch of circumstantial evidence, and even the stuff that they have that is rock solid isn't enough to put them all away for as long as they should be. So no, they won't arrest Jon." Luke and Jon looked as though they were in a pretty heated discussion, and Jocelyn put her hand on her sons shoulder, giving it a light squeeze and saying something to him.

"What are they talking about?" Jace asked.

"Luke's trying to get Jon to join us, testify against dad," Clary sighed and Jace looked across at her, noting how pale she looked against her fiery hair. Even her green eyes looked dull compared to how they usually glowed. He laced his fingers together with hers, tugging her a little closer so that she could lean against his body. He felt her sigh again as her head rested on his shoulder.

"Do you think he'll do it?" Jace murmured.

"I don't think he has much of a choice," Clary responded. "He just made his stance with dad clear. Can't really come back from that." Jace nodded, and then straightened up as Jon parted from Luke and Jocelyn, walking over to the pair of them. Clary smiled up at him, pulling away from Jace to collapse against him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Jace saw the love in Jons' face as he held his sister, an almost exact reflection of the way Alec looked at Isabelle. "Missed you, big brother."

"Fucking missed you as well, you crazy bitch," Jon huffed affectionately into her neck before pulling back and finally looking over at Jace. "You're Jace."

"Uh," Jace shifted from foot to foot. "Yeah."

"My guy," Jon jerked his thumb over his shoulder toward Victor, the private investigator. "He did some looking into you after he found Clary and saw you two together." Jace didn't particularly like the sound of that but he wasn't going to get into that now. "Are you two, like, a thing?" He looked between his sister and Jace. Jace opened his mouth but didn't really know how to reply.

"Something like that," Clary gave Jace a small smile as she looked over at him. Jon nodded and then pursed his lips as Luke called out to him. "So are you joining me and mum?"

"I guess," he didn't sound very happy. "I don't have all that many options. They said if I testify, they'll protect me, put me into WITSEC like with you guys. Don't know how much I trust the Feds, but they said they've already got the case together. Because of all of this, they can move their time line up, get everything started now so that there's less time for him to try and put something into motion to get us silenced."

"Sounds like fun," Clary muttered as she reached out for the comfort of Jace's hand.

 _OMG! How many times have you guys watched Jenna Dewan-Tatum's dance to her hubby's_ Magic Mike _song? She's so fucking hot! Her and Channing are my fave celeb couple *sigh*. Out of those Lip Sync battle performances, I don't know if it's the Tatum's who are my favourites, or the Hough siblings, coz Julianne and Derek are just baaaaabes._

 _So for another story that I'm working on, can you guys give me job/career ideas of what you imagine our TMI characters having in an AU world? Clary, Jace, Izzy, Simon, Alec, Magnus, Kaelie, Maia, Raphael...Etc etc. Let me know in the reviews or in a PM._

 _Also, can we just take a moment to appreciate how beautiful Chris Evans and Jeremy Renner looked at the Oscars? Holy shit. And how Taraji P Henson absolutely slayed on the red carpet? She's so fucking_ gorgeous _._

 _Please leave review!_

 _And if you're logged in and want a preview, let me know xx_


	30. Chapter 30

_Last chapter! I just want to say a massive thank you to everyone who has enjoyed this story, an who has reviewed and favourited and PM'd me. Your support has been incredible. I have a lot of new stories that I'm working on, four that I've already posted and a good five or six more that I'm till planning out and getting ready to post. I'm always happy to talk about them_ _—or anything in the fandom, actually—so if you want to talk, just PM me!_

"Did you tell Jocelyn where you were?" Jace asked as he finally reached the top of the ladder. Clary had text him and told him to meet him out at the water tower. He wasn't too sure how long she had been out here, but she was still dressed in shorts and a thin tee-shirt, and it was now evening and beginning to get colder, so he was guessing that she had been here for a while. He shrugged out of the hoodie he was wearing and slung it over her shoulders. She gave him a small thankful smile before shaking her head.

"No, I didn't" she rolled her eyes. "I don't think she would really approve. Oh, I meant to ask actually. Is this some kind of trespassing—coming out here?" There weren't any big gates with locks, but there was a fence with a couple of signs on it that she hadn't really paid any attention to on her way up here, or when she had come up here the first time with Jace.

"Eh," Jace shrugged non-committedly. "Probably. But people have been coming up here for years, and nothing has happened yet. As soon as someone gets hurt, though, that'll be a whole other story." He made himself comfortable next to her, leaning against the big concrete wall of the water tower and legs stretched out beside hers, his legs longer than hers so that his ankles were just on the edge of the walk path.

"Surprised some drunk asshole hasn't already fallen off here," Clary pointed out, scrunching up her nose as she peered down at the long drop from where they were sitting to the ground where their cars were parked.

"Well we're not all impulsive like big, city people," Jace smirked. "We all know each other out here, and there's generally someone sober enough to talk someone down from doing something stupid." Clary shrugged and took in a deep breath, crossing her arms over her chest. She looked lost in thought, swamped in his hoodie which was oversized and looked ridiculously sexy on her, just like any of his clothes did, and Jace put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into his side. It had been a week since her father had shown up, and apart from the fading bruises on her forearm and the healing cut on her face, she had recovered quickly. He wouldn't have expected anything differently, given how strong she was, but she had had moments where she had fallen silent. "How's Jonathon doing?"

"He's doing okay," Clary made a face. "He really doesn't like it here. Wants to be back in the city. He won't need to wait too long. With him on the witness list, they're moving the trial up as soon as possible, they don't want to risk anything getting out and compromising any of the other witnesses and evidence like it has before." Jace raised an eyebrow at that and Clary shrugged. "They've been after dad for years," she said quietly. She managed to act as though she was quite detached, but there was still a heaviness in her eyes.

Despite everything he had done, she was still testifying against her _father_ , part of the team that was looking to put him in jail.

That was going to be something she would always carry on her shoulders, no matter how much of a dangerous asshole he was.

"Do you think Jon will go back afterwards?"

"To New York?" Jace nodded. "I heard him talking to mum about it," she replied. "I mean, I had never really thought about what would happen after the trial, you know? I think I just assumed that we would go back, you know, to the city." Jace didn't know what he had thought was going to happen after the trial; to be honest, he hadn't really had time to think about it with everything else that he was still processing. The idea of her going back to New York really wasn't something that he liked, but it's not like he really had a say in the whole thing. "But then, it's not like we can. Sure, dad and most of the high ups in the gang are going to be arrested, but there's still going to be some people loyal to him and allies. We can't really go back. It wouldn't be safe."

"Then stay here," Jace stated. Clary frowned a little and looked up at him, green meeting gold. "I couldn't..." he licked his lips and took in a deep breath, refusing to back down without telling her what was going on in his head. "I don't want you to leave. I want you to stay here." Clary stared at him for a few more seconds before her cheeks stained a pretty pink colour and her lips turned upward in a smile.

"Really?" She asked, biting down adorably on her lower lip.

"Really," Jace murmured, leaning forward and pressing a kiss to her mouth. It was just soft and brief, but when he pulled back, her eyes were still closed as though she was savoring it, and he couldn't resist bumping his nose against hers a couple of times. It was an intimate gesture, something so sweet that it made Clary's heart tighten as he rested his forehead against hers. "I couldn't imagine you not being around." Clary nodded her head once, and then dropped her head, snuggling up to his side. Jace swallowed hard, a lump in his throat that the red head seemed to bring on every time she did something cute—actions that used to get on his nerves when previous lovers had done them to him. "So? What do you think is going to happen?"

"Well, Jon is going to testify as a witness. He's seen a lot more than us. They're going to give him immunity, just like they have with me and mum, if he does it, and they're letting him pick where he goes afterwards. He won't go back to New York, but he'll pick a city, he couldn't ever live permanently in a town this size," she commented.

"But isn't that what you thought about yourself?"

"Yeah, but, Jon is different," Clary shrugged. "He's older, more set in his ways. And he doesn't have someone like you," she gave him a little nudge in the side with her elbow and he gave her half smile. "Mum likes it here, she wants to stay. I think that I'll..." she glanced up at him. "I think that I'll stay with her."

"Yeah?" Jace asked hopefully.

"Yeah," Clary nodded slowly, curling her fingers into his shirt, nuzzling her nose into his chest.

* * *

There was some confusion in the town, wondering what had happened, especially on the day where all the police had shown up at their home and cordoned off the street when gunshots were reported by neighbours. It got played off as a home invasion, the Feds doing their thing, and the newspapers reported that the men had been apprehended and there were no casualties. A couple of people had seen Jace there, and had asked him lots of questions, and Izzy and Alec had been worried and took to texting him every couple of hours to make sure he hadn't gone into shock or had a panic attack. He loved them even more for their concern, noting for the umpteenth time that they were more his family that his father or his step-brother had ever been, given they just asked if he was okay and then left it at that. Simon and Izzy had also swarmed around Clary, making sure she was okay, and that her and her mum had dinners ready every night and had everything they needed.

Jace had seen the appreciation glowing in Jocelyn's face as the friends all helped each other out, and there had been a definite sheen of tears in Clary's eyes.

The trial was expedited, and everything was thrown in fast forward. Clary, Jocelyn and Jon were transported to another location to keep them safe until the actual trial date. He hadn't heard anything from her in a few weeks, until a couple days before the actual trial. He got a blocked call at work, and then Clary's voice filtered through. She had told him what day she was testifying, and that they would be in New York for the full trial. Jace hadn't thought twice about telling his father he was taking a few days off work and then getting the first flight he could to New York.

He hadn't been too sure if she wanted him to go into the actual trial itself, as it was a public trial. He decided against it, but he went to the huge New York Supreme court on the day that Clary was testifying. He hadn't heard from her again, but understood that she and her family had a lot going on. When they had spoken previously, she had said that they were going through all of their testimonies again and again and _again_ until she could repeat it in her sleep, and apparently they were going to keep on going right up until the actual day. Her mother was going to be the first to testify, and Clary was second.

Jace waited outside the court room right from nine o'clock, not sure when she would be coming in. He sat on the wooden benches, wearing his best suit as he watched lawyers and security guards and defendants walk up and down the hall, until he caught sight of Luke and Hodge approaching the court room, two people dressed in expensive as hell suits; so likely to the the lawyers, and then behind them was Clary, Jocelyn and Luke. Clary looked completely different, her make up toned down, looking like she was only wearing a bit of foundation and blush and some nude lip stick, and her hair was straightened and pulled back in a low pony tail. And her outfit was something he never thought that he would see her in, a knee length skirt, light blue blouse and a pair of black pumps.

"Jace!" Clary spotted him and a smile spread across her face. The lawyers gave her an impatient look as she walked over to Jace and he got up, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her in for a tight hug. "I'm so glad you came."

"Yeah, I didn't want to go in, I wasn't sure if you wanted me in there or not," Jace said as she pulled away. Clary nodded a couple of times, licking her lips.

"Maybe not today," she murmured. "This is the first day I'm going on and I'm nervous as fuck."

"Hi, Jace," Jocelyn called over to him, waving her fingers and he smiled back at her, nodding at Jon who dipped his chin in response.

"Clary?" One of the lawyers gave her a pointed look and she sighed.

"I should go in, the trial starts soon and we all need to be seated and ready," Clary murmured.

"That's totally fine, I get it," Jace framed her face with his hands and looked down at her. "You're going to be absolutely fine, okay? You've got this. You know you're safe, and you know that what you're doing is the right thing." She nodded, but there was still a worried look in her big green eyes. "You guy get to break for lunch, right?"

"We fucking better," Clary scrunched up her cute, button nose. "I was too nervous to eat breakfast, so I'm going to be _starving_ by the time lunch rolls around." Jace snorted and kissed her on the forehead.

"I'll be waiting, okay?" He promised her. She nodded before she was escorted into the court room and disappeared from view. The trial dragged on for almost two weeks, and Clary managed to talk the Suits around so that Jace could stay at the 'safe house' where her and her family were staying. Jace didn't care that his father sounded annoyed when he rung and said that he would be taking more time off.

The hotel room was nowhere near as nice as the place that he had originally booked for himself, but he didn't care. Clary was there, and so that was where he wanted to be. He never actually went into the court room in the end, Clary had said that she didn't want him to have to see everything her father had done. It wasn't necessarily that she was hiding it from him, because the trial was plastered all over the news and the papers, and it was becoming very evident what a horrible man that he was. But there were witness accounts, and there were graphic photos and recounts, and Jace was completely fine if Clary didn't want him there to listen or see that.

But he was there at night to hold her when the adrenaline that had been getting her through the day wore off, and she was shaking and shivering in her bed. She refused to go on the days where she didn't need to testify, hearing about it from her mother and brother when they got home that night. During the days that she didn't go, her and Jace would just stay in the hotel room, watching movies and ordering in food. It seemed to distract her a little, although Jace wasn't stupid enough to think that he managed to keep her mind off what was going on down town.

The jury didn't take long to deliberate an outcome.

Jace wasn't sure how long was normal, but apparently there was a chance it could take weeks to come to a conclusion. This jury only took a few hours. Jocelyn and Jon headed back in, but Clary hung back, saying that she couldn't go back inside. Jace was fine with that, taking her hand and leading her out of the court house. There were press all swarmed there, wanting to know what the result was, and they were so excited they were practically buzzing when it filtered outside that the court was reconvening so quickly.

"Are you worried?" Jace asked as Clary lit up a cigarette when the two of them sat down on the concrete steps leading up to the court house.

"No," she replied automatically, but the way that she was sucking on the fag as though it was a life line indicated that she wasn't quite as certain. Jace stared at her and she swallowed hard after exhaling a long stream of hazy smoke. "The Suits say that we don't have anything to worry about, they said that especially with our testimonies, dad and seven of the other members will definitely be charged."

"So that's got to be a good thing, right? That they've called everyone back in so early?" Jace tried to sound encouraging.

"Yup," Clary popped the 'p' in the sentence, sucking in another lungful of smoke, but her voice was tight, worried. "Must be." Jace reached out a hand and squeezed hers hard. She gave him a strained smile as she finished off her cigarette and dropped it to the ground, stubbing it out with the front of her shoe. She was about to pull out another one and light it up, when the front doors of the court house swung open, and the reporters started shouting at whoever was at the door. Clary's fingers tightened around Jace, so tight that Jace was worried that she was going to dislocate one of his digits, and he swallowed hard as they waited to hear the result.

"Mum?" Clary caught sight of Jocelyn dodging around the reporters trying to shove cameras and microphones in her face. She gave them all dirty looks, pushing them away, and it looked as though they got distracted by the lawyers coming out and addressing them, because she managed to get away from them and jog down the steps to meet Clary and Jace. For a moment, Jace was worried that things hadn't gone in their direction, that all of this had been for nothing and that Clary's fears had all come true.

But then a smile broke out across Jocelyn's face.

"Guilty," she breathed. "They found him guilty, baby." Clary let out a little squeak as she released Jace's hand and jumped to hug her mother. Jocelyn let out a laugh as she hugged her daughter back. Jon jogged down the stairs to join them, shaking Jace's hand before kissing his mother and sister on the cheek.

"I can't believe we're free," Clary breathed.

"Believe it, baby," Jocelyn laughed, sounding like she still couldn't quite believe it.

"So what do we do now?" Jon asked, raising his eyebrows at looking at his family. Clary ran her fingers through her hair, flipping it over her shoulders, and then reached out for Jace, a smile on her mouth.

"We go home," she decided as he pulled her in for a kiss.

 _Okay! So my song recommendations this time are_ Eraser _by Ed Sheeran, but let's be honest, I completely love pretty much everything by him. Also_ Alarm _by Ann Marie, which was recommended to me by Caaatttt, and_ Sleepover _by Hayley Kiyoko, although just like with Ed Sheeran, I love everything by Hayley, and her music videos are always incredible._

 _Something else I wanted to ask about was if any of you guys have watched_ Riverdale _? I remember reading the_ Archie _comics when I was younger, and I was pretty surprised when they decided to make a show about it. I find the show...Pretty average, but I really love some of the characters, especially Cheryl Blossom and Jughead Jones. And so, like with any fandom when I start to really like the characters, I've decided that I'm probably going to write a fic! I'm wondering if any of you guys would be interested? Let me know!_

 _A huge, huge, HUGE thank you again, for all of your support._

 _You guys are incredible._

 _Please leave one last review xx_


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